From the Playground of the Gods
The Life 8c Art of Bikky Sunozawa
NB
1059
.S97
D84
2004
1
From the Playground of the Gods
The Life and Art of Bikky Sunazawa
by Chisato O. Dubreuil
From the Playground of the Gods
The Life and Art of Bikky Sunazawa
by Chisato O. Dubreuil
with a Foreword by William W, Fitzhugh
Arctic Studies Center, National Museum of Natural History,
Smithsonian Institution
Distributed by University of Hawai'i Press
Copyright ® 2004 Arctic Studies Center, National Museum of Natural History,
Smithsonian Institution.
All rights reserved. No portion ol this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form
or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or any information
storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing horn the publisher.
From tlie Playground of tlie Gods: die Life and Art of Bikky Siinazawa
was printed by The Castle Press, Pasadena, Calilornia U.S.A.
Designed by Betty Adair, The Castle Press
Edited by Kathy Tally-Jones, Perpetua Press, Santa Barbara, California
The paper in this book meets the guidelines for permanence and durability of the Committee on
Production (iuidelines for Book Longevity of the Council on Library Resources.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Dubreuil, Chisato O.
From the Playground of the Gods : the Life and Art of Bikky Sunazawa / by Chisato O. Dubreuil ;
with a foreword by William W. Fitzhugh.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references.
ISBN 0-9673429-8-8 (alk. paper)
1. Sunazawa, Bikky, 1931-1989. 2. Sculptors— Japan— Biography. 3. Ainu— Flistory. I.Arctic
Studies Center (National Museum of Natural History) II Title.
NB1059.S97D84 2004
730\92-dc22
2004017834
Editor's Note
Spelling. Readers may note inconsistency in the presentation of some Ainu terms, personal names, and
geographic place-names. This is because Ainu language has three geographic dialects — from Hokkaido, the
Kuriles, and Sakhalin — and many dialects with marked variation in terminology and pronunciation. Because
Ainu was a spoken and not a written language, early field workers, lacking dictionaries, transcribed Ainu
terms, and names as best they could. Many spellings have been systematized, but in some cases terms remain
as originally recorded.
Tins book is dedicated to the memory
MoTOKO Ikeda-Spiegel
Contents
Author's Note ix
Foreword xi
Introduction xix
Sidebar 1: Who Are the Ainu? xix
Chapter i: Bikkys Early Life and Influences (1931-1953) 1
Sidebar 2: The Ainu Homeland 1
Sidebar 3: Ainu Wood Carving 3
Chapter 2: The Night Train to Tokyo: Bikkys Art Evolves (1953-1964) . 15
Sidebar 4: Origins of Ainu Tourist Art 15
Sidebar 5: Ainu Fabric Art 23
Chapter 3: The Back of the Mask:
Art and Activism in Sapporo (1964-1978) 31
Sidebar 6: Ainu Art and The Japanese Art Establishment 31
Sidebar 7: The Bear in Ainu Tourist Art 37
Chapter 4: Totem Poles and Tall Trees:
Bikky Returns to His Roots (1978-1983) 49
Chapter 5: Transforming Visions:
Bikky and the Northwest Coast of Canada (1983) 61
Sidebar 8: Bikky s Tools 61
Chapter 6: The Northern King: Final Years (1984-1989) 77
Chapter 7: Bikky 's Legacy 109
Bibliography 119
Figure List 128
^APR 2 5 2005
Author's Note
On November 29, 1987, two Japanese amateur astronomers from
Hokkaido, K. Endate and K. Watanabe, members of the International
Astronomical Union, discovered a small planet.' After the required rigorous
independent examination, they registered it with the Minor Planet Center at the
Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory on September 1, 1993, and received
registry number 5372. They also named the planet. When named after a person,
it is customary to use only the family name. The discoverers broke with tradition
and gave the planet the honor of carrying only the given name of an extremely
gifted contemporary Ainu artist. That artist was Bikky.
1. Marsdcn, 1993
ix
Foreword
William W. Fitzhugh
Arctic Studies Center
Smithsonian Institution
In 1988 the National Museum of Natural History opened a special exhibi-
tion featuring the traditional cultures of the North Pacific region from Vancouver
Island to Amur River and Sakhalin. Crossroads of Continents: Cultures of Siberia
and Alaska^ explored similarities and differences in history, culture, and art of
native groups living around the northern rim of the Pacific and adjacent Bering
and Chukchi Seas. Of these northern cultures, the Ainu, whose name means
"people" or "humans" in their language, could not be represented for political and
organizational reasons. The Ainu formerly inhabited the Kurile Islands, southern
Sakhalin, and part of northern Honshu; today the northern Japanese island of
Hokkaido remains the only homeland of the Ainu people, most of whom live in
small villages scattered in different areas of Hokkaido. Because Crossroads was con-
ducted under a bilateral arrangement with the Soviet Union, which did not want
its political history involving the seizure of the Kuriles and southern Sakhalin and
expulsion of Ainu peoples aired broadly to the public. Crossroads proceeded with a
conspicuous gap in our roster of North Pacific peoples.
In 1990, while Crossroads was still touring, I began preparing an exhibi-
tion about the Ainu to rectify this slight."' Europeans have had a long history of
interest in the Ainu, beginning with Dutch and Jesuit contacts in the Dejima
(Nagaskai) trade entrepot in the seventeenth century and continuing with the
early nineteenth-century work of Europe's premier (and first) Japanologist, Philipp
von Siebold, whose multi-volume opus, Nippon, brought knowledge of Japan to
the western world for the first time. After Commodore Matthew Perry lorced the
xi
Japanese to lift their exclusionary ban on foreign travel within their archipelago in
1854, Europeans and Americans began to visit Hokkaido, both as tourists and for
official reasons. They discovered a culture in drastic decline and were convinced
that the Ainu would not survive more than a few decades. This view was also held
by the Japanese, whose official policies were directed to hasten assimilation. The
views of these visitors reflected their awareness, and sometimes their direct expe-
rience, of hidian cultures of the American West, which were also thought to be
on the verge of extinction. Among the early visitors to the Ainu was the intrepid
Englishwoman, Isabella Bird, who wrote a book about her 1878 experiences.
Others came during the 1870s as representatives of the United States government,
which had pledged technical assistance to the new Meiji government for the devel-
opment of Hokkaido's natural resources.
Reports by these travelers and officials of the Ainu's striking dress, elaborate
ceremonial life, and unusual physical appearance sparked the interest of American
scholars and museum directors. The long flowing beards, hirsute bodies, large
stature, deep-set eyes, and facial features (which most foreigners thought resembled
Caucasoids more than Mongoloids), and the striking lip tattoos worn by women,
made Ainu appear very different from other Asian populations. Although it is
unclear where the idea originated, by 1 868 Albert Bickmore, President of the
American Museum of Natural History, was in the habit of commenting on the
bearded "Aryan appearance " of the Ainu, and in the decades before 1900 this
idea became the major focus of public interest in the Ainu, in tandem with the
earlier romantic European notion of the Ainu as a representative of the "noble
savage," more so even than the American Indian. For the next four decades, most
of the large natural history museums in Eastern North America, including the
Smithsonian Institution, sent collectors to Hokkaido to gather Ainu objects, study
its culture and population, and make photographic records of this "peculiar"
people. The "Ainu enigma" became a popular scholarly puzzle that tantalized nine-
teenth century explorers, museum collectors, and anthropologists researching the
origin and spread of human "races."
Unfortunately, this overly-romantic and simplistic view of the Ainu
has persisted into the modern era. Visitors to the National Museum of Natural
History in the early 1990s who were interviewed about their knowledge of the
Ainu mostly misidentified Ainu as American Indians or Eskimos, or thought they
were extinct. Most who recognize the word "Ainu" know it only as a four-letter
answer to the popular crossword puzzle clue, "a northern native people of Japan."
The causes of ignorance are many: a lack of English-language literature, absence
of museum presentations and exhibitions, paucity of Ainu scholars outside Japan,
and infrequent European and American visitation to Hokkaido.
It was therefore clear that the exhibition, eventually titled Ainu: Spirit of a
Northern People, needed to broaden understanding among Westerners about Ainu
history, culture, and contemporary life. Over the following two years, I and a team
of Japanese, European, and American scholars and museum curators inspected the
nineteenth and early twentieth century collections in Washington, Philadelphia,
New York, and Brooklyn, and held seminars and workshops with Ainu experts.
Befitting my own background as an archaeologist, I was intrigued by the advances
archaeological research had made in researching the Ainu's cultural origins. In this
field, some of the earliest scientific shellmound excavations conducted in the 1870s
by Heinrich von Siebold in Omori, Edward Morse in Tokyo Bay, and Romyn
Hitchcock in the Kuriles and Hokkaido provided a foundation for modern archae-
ological studies by Japanese archaeologists suggesting ties between living Ainu
people and the prehistoric Jomon culture of Japan. With recent DNA evidence,
today there is nearly complete agreement that Ainu origins lie with the Jomon
culture which occupied much of the Japanese archipelago throughout the
Holocene and persisted in an evolved form in Hokkaido until ca. A.D. 500. On
Honshu, Jomon culture was replaced by the forerunners of the modern Japanese
state about 2,000 years ago, while in Hokkaido it was replaced by Okhotsk and
Satsumon cultures which retained more elements of the Jomon tradition. Most
archaeologists see Satsumon as the most likely immediate ancestor of modern Ainu
culture in northern Honshu and southern Hokkaido, while Satsumon-influenced
Okhotsk culture, a northern culture, is believed to be the source of Sakhalin and
Kurile Ainu.
However, the team quickly began to see the exhibition needed to be more
than an anthropological study ol an ancient people to be represented by old Ainu
collections and archival materials; rather we thought it was important to present
the traditional collections within the broader context of Ainu history, archaeology,
traditional ethnology, and art. Fortunately, Chisato Dubreuil, a woman of Ainu
ancestry who had recently completed a master's degree in native art history at
the University of Washington in Seattle, was available and joined the project.
Chisato had a deep interest in Ainu culture and knew many Ainu cultural leaders
and artists in Japan. Throtigh Chisato's efforts, the exhibition grew to embrace
the story of the Ainu as a modern people. The hving tradition of Ainu art and
culture enlivened our collection study and gave a broader purpose to what had
previously been an esoteric enterprise. Suddenly the meaning of the objects and
archival materials was transformed from "specimen" into "treasure, " from nameless
photographic images into someone's grandmother or grandfather, and the show
took on a living dimension. The "unknown" North American collections began
to reconnect with their Hokkaido past. We became something more than curators
inquiring into a remote culture and began to see how these materials could
contribute to the Ainu cultural rebirth underway in Japan after a long and painful
period of history.
In 1868, a political upheaval in Japan had brought to power a progressive
government known as the Meiji Restoration. Modernization was a major goal
of the new administration, and one of its first acts was to give Ezo, Japan's large,
undeveloped northern island, a new name: Hokkaido. Japanese citizens were
encouraged to emigrate to exploit Hokkaido's natural resources. The resulting
northern "land-rush" flooded the island with new-comers and brought a new way
of life to a huge territory that until then, except for the Matsumae enclave and few
Japanese fishing stations, had been the sole province of the native Ainu people.
Meiji policies brought a harsh new reality to Ainu life that had already suffered
three himdred years of military defeat, territorial loss, political and economic
subjugation, and social discrimination at the hands of Russians and Japanese. The
Meiji government and most Japanese immigrants saw Ainu adherence to their
traditional life as an obstacle to progress, and policies were instituted to force
rapid Japanese colonization and "civilize" the Ainu. Within a few years most Ainu
lands, resources, and native rights had been taken away, and in 1899 these actions
were codified in a native "protection" act whose actual intent was to terminate
Ainu culture and force assimilation into Japanese society. It imposed harsh and
restrictive conditions on Ainu existence and cultural expression, and the Ainu were
forced to attend segregated schools and were refused access to traditional game
and fish. Their religious ceremonies were banned and they could not participate as
regular members of Japanese society.
The results were variable. Although the Ainu population on Hokkaido did
not become extinct, as expected, neither did it grow dramatically; today it stands
at 25,000, only 10,000 higher than in 1886. During these years many of those
born to Ainu abandoned their impoverished villages and moved to the rapidly
growing cities where they attended high schools and universities, took jobs, and
melted into the larger Japanese population. Once outside the Ainu residential
commtmities, couples, including mixed Japanese and Ainu twosomes, often
disguised their Ainu backgrounds so that their children could escape the stigma of
social discrimination against Ainu that was prevalent among Hokkaido Japanese
and elsewhere in Japan.
Those who remained "Ainu" expressed their ethnicity in different ways.
Some maintained Ainu traditions as subsistence or small-scale farmers, hunters,
trappers, and fishermen who continued to practice Ainu religion and customs,
secretly holding periodic bear ceremonies, burying their dead in the Ainu way,
and engaging in traditional carving and weaving for home consumption. But as
Hokkaido began to fill with Japanese immigrants and cities began to grow in the
late 1 800s, economics forced the Ainu to develop new sources ol income. Some
found a life harvesting timber; others began to replicate decorative wood platters
or other material culture items for collectors and the growing numbers of tourists
attracted to Japan's new "wild north," whose attractions also included the Ainu
themselves. As tourist centers in Asahikawa, Akan, Shiraoi, and elsewhere began to
develop, a new craft industry took root, providing seasonal income for Ainu who
carved, sewed garments, and demonstrated Ainu rituals and dances for the public,
first in their villages for those visitors interested in truly rustic adventures, and later
in prepared sites that advertised Ainu attractions and catered especially to tourists.
By the end of the twentieth century the "tourist" Ainu had become an established
profession and the sales of Ainu crafts had become an important economic activity
for some Ainu families. On the one hand tourism codified a new definition of
Ainu culture as a conscious form ot living history and culture, though re-enacting
it for the public in artificial settings disturbed many Ainu who preferred to main-
tain their culture in a more private manner.
Art in particular allowed twentieth century Ainu to express their beliefs
and ethnicity in a way that produced income and internal cohesion for Ainu
people, much as it had in earlier periods. As Ainu carvers began to transfer their
skills from personal objects to mass produced tourist art — especially their signa-
ture bear carvings — new economic and artistic opportunities were created that led
eventually to the transformation ot Ainu art from its traditional personal and reli-
gious forms to commercial and fine arts functions.
XV
Chisato Dubreuil brought this story to Hte beautifully within the Ainu:
Spirit of a Northern People exhibition and catalogue through biographical profiles
of Ainu artists who pioneered the "break-out" of Ainu art from its traditional
encumbrances, and from its commercial shackles as commercial tourist art, into
the international world of fine arts. No one exemplified this transformation more
completely than Bikky Sunazawa. Bikky Sunazawas art was unknown in North
America and relatively little-known outside Hokkaido when the Smithsonian
opened the exhibition in the spring of 1999. Bikky, a nickname meaning "frog"
in Ainu, suited the earthy, iconoclastic character who rose to prominence in the
1970-80s as a charismatic young artist interested in advancing the political and
ctdtural aspirations of Ainu people. Initially through direct political action and
later through his art, Bikky translated the historical legacy of Ainu culture into
a powerful message of modern Ainu identity unlike any previous Ainu artist.
Although qualifying as a prominent artist by any standard, Bikky never achieved
the recognition he deserved in his own country. In part this may result from his
premature death and the geographic and cultural insularity of his Hokkaido home-
land and Ainu ethnicity, but likely continuing attitudes of regional and ethnic
discrimination also contributed.
I was therefore very pleased when Chisato, after leaving the Smithsonian,
wrote an English language book devoted to Bikky s life and art, and even more
pleased that we are able to publish it through the generous support of the Motoko
Ikeda-Spiegel Memorial Foundation. Her current work is the most comprehensive
treatment of the artist who became the pivot-point in the development of modern
Ainu fine art. Chisato Dubreuil has spent much of the past eleven years gathering
information on Bikky from his family and friends, from newspaper and magazine
articles, from catalogs of his art shows, and from her own interviews of art critics,
museum curators, artists, art collectors, and from Bikky's own writings. A complex
character who richly deserves the "larger than life" epithet, Bikky was sensitive,
dramatic, extremely innovative in several areas of art, loyal to his friends but hard
on family relationships. Beginning with the spectacular composite designs derived
from traditional Ainu textile arts passed down from his mother, each of his works
proved equally innovative and inspirational, each successive style breaking new
ground and revealing new and more profound insights into "what it means to be
Ainu." Like the Haida carver. Bill Reid, whose work and life inspired Bikky at a
crucial point in his development, Bikky translated his native beliefs, sensibilities,
and ethnic traditions into artistic expressions that embody a strong Ainu vision.
His premature death in 1989, occurring at a time when he was still
exploring his talents, was especially tragic in that he did not live to see the passage
in 1997 of the Ainu Shinpo, an Act of the Japanese Diet that finally began the
process of addressing repressive governmental policies ol the past. Despite tremen-
dous obstacles, Ainu people and culture survived the twentieth century, and thanks
to the Ainu Shinpo, they now have for the first time the foundation for positive
support for Ainu culture and language. Today Ainu culture is beginning to be
recognized for its historical tenacity, the beauty of its art and literature, and for the
important message its religion and philosophy — spiritual balance between humans
and nature — brings to the wider world at a critical moment in human history.
This recognition goes hand in hand with the recognition of Bikky Sunazawa as
one of the most creative and important contemporary native artists within today's
circumpolar peoples.
End Notes
1. Fitzhugh and Crowell (1988).
2. The bulk of the following text is an abridged version of the author's introduction to Ainu: Spirit of a
Northern People, edited by William W. Fitzhugh and Chisato Dubreuil (1999). Those interested in kirther
information and appropriate textual citations of this intormation should see that vokmie.
Introduction
Bikky looked like a bear, drmik like a fish,
and worked like a beaver. '
As the opening day for the Contemporary Artists' Series '89 in
the Kanagawa Prefectural Gallery outside of Tokyo neared, Ainu art-
ist Bikky Sunazawa dropped a bombshell. From his hospital bed in
Hokkaido, far to the north, he insisted that he would personally install
his work and that he was going to attend the exhibition's opening. In
the last stages of terminal cancer, the 57-year-old Bikky, with typical
single-mindedness, refused to listen to anyone who tried sidebar i
to talk him out of going. Driven by a creative passion
throughout his life, the determined artist convinced his
family and friends to help make his dream a reality. Even
Bikky's doctor, moved by his determination and attracted
by his charisma, took time off from her other patients to
travel with him to Tokyo and take care of him.
The Kanagawa Gallery is the most important
Japanese gallery emphasizing modern sculpture, and its
large open spaces suited Bikky's large-scale wood sculp-
tures. He had looked forward to the day when he could
exhibit his work there. But more than that, exhibiting in
the gallery, an important venue lor Japanese contempo-
rary art, also meant acceptance by the Japanese art world.
A complicated man, Bikky fought throughout his tur-
bulent life against discrimination by the Japanese against
Fig. A 1.3
Ainu hunter in
niountain clorlie
Who Are
the Ainu?
The Ainu are
lapan's indig-
enous people, ^
who lived in
fishing, hunting,
and gathering tribal
groups for centuries
along the north Pacific
Rim.' They are one of
the most enigmatic
ethnic groups in the world, and the Ainu
language is completely unrelated to any
other language group, including
japanese. The Ainu were traditionally
found mainly on Japan's northern island
of Hokkaido, southern Sakhalin, through-
out the Kurile islands, on southern
Kamchatka, and the Lower Amur River
region.^ While the number of full blood
Ainu is small, now down to less than a
dozen, there are at least seventy thousan
mixed race Ainu throughout japan, with
Who are the Ainu? continued
more than twenty-five thousand of that
number in Hokl<aido.
Ainu origins have puzzled anthropolo-
gists, archaeologists, linguists, and other
scholars since the mid-1 800s. The Ainu
look distinctively different from Japanese
and other Asian people. Since the mid-
1880s scholars have developed theories
that the Ainu:
• are an isolated Caucasoid people, ^
• originated from the Australoids or the
Polynesians,"'
• should be considered Mongoloid
because of serological and genetic
similarities,^
• originated in the Amur River basin on
the east Asian mainland.^
• or may be descended from the |omon,
the earliest indigenous people of |apan.'
Russia
71
Sea ot Okhotsk /kamchalkap
Ainu (?K
Sakhalin Amu / Kunle Amu
Hokkaido Amu 'J'
Tohoku Ainu
the Ainu people and expectations that Ainu artists were
capable of creating only traditional or tourist art. Bikky
did much to break through these barriers.
With the help of his assistants, Bikky had spent
the months before the exhibition feverishly completing
works, often in great pain. Works such as the Kaze
(Wind) series give a sense of his struggles: for example,
on one work, many deep, rough, and sharp incisions
gouge the upper portion ol the piece, carved against the
grain oi the wood. His use oi a chopping and slashing
carving technique created a visceral texture that also
suggests the work of nature, art formed naturally with-
out the use of human hands.
Other large-scale works in the exhibition
suggested treatments and themes Bikky internal-
ized during a 1983 stay with Canada's Northwest
Coast Native artists. There he experienced old
totem poles in their natural setting, some cracked
and split, some rotting and returning to nature,
"terrifically magical, demonstrating the Native
artist's observation of the struggle of nature," he
told an interviewer on his return to Japan.' He
was physically moved by the old totem poles,
especially those that had tumbled down and were
decomposing. For Bikky this was the natural
UQdem Amu teaitory
HI Amu ternlortes betore 1945
[fe'l Probable lormer Amu lernlones
Fig. A1.2: Map ot Hokkaido and Ainu Luids.
Who are the Ainu? continued
The Ainu had no written language and
because the language is an isolate, there
are few clues as to their origin. However,
recent DNA analysis show the Ainu are
very likely the direct descendants of the
)omon (the ancient Japanese), making
their artistic traditions one of the most
continuous in the history of art.^
The Ainu's traditional way of life changed
drastically in the mid-nineteenth century.
After the Meiji Restoration and consolida-
tion of a central government in 1868,
Hokkaido was officially annexed by |apan,
and the |apanese government forced
i 'diiliiHii's nil /'dxt' xxii
order of things, natures reclaiming of man's work. It was
a revelation: this realization of nature's primal role was
what had been missing from his art. After this eye-
opening experience of Canadian Native art, Bikky dared
to create outdoor monumental sculptures in wood. He
believed that the natural phenomena would complete
his work after leaving his hand, and he was able to bring
his beloved wood full circle. His work would be inte-
grated as part of nature, which became a crucial theme
of some of his later work.
It also stunned Bikky to learn that Native artists
could be "successful and respected" — not just souvenir artists with little artistic
skill, as many Japanese believed about the Ainu. ' While Bikky had been struggling
to create a place for himself as an Ainu in the
Japanese art world, the Canadian experience
allowed him to break through the self con-
sciousness of being called an 'Ainu" artist. He
began accepting a wider definition of what
an artist was, whether he was an Ainu artist
or simply a modern sculptor. Because he had
met well-respected Canadian Native artists,
especially Haida artist Bill Reid (1920-1998),
he started to believe that being an Ainu artist
was not a liability.
The Kanagawa exhibit also included
Bikky 's last work, created during a frantic
two-day hospital furlough granted by his
doctors. They had granted him this privilege
after learning that he was so intent on fin-
ishing his work that he was going to direct
his assistants, who planned to set up shop
in an empty lot in the hospital compotmd,
I y with walkie-talkies while looking through his
" _ __y window. Nitnekamuy (Evil God; Fig. A. 1) is
, , , ., „ named lor one of the trickster gods of the
A.l: NiuickiDiuiy (hvil (,od), 1988. &
Who are the Ainu? continued
the Ainu to assimilate into the |apanese
population.^ The government forbade the
custom of burning a deceased person's
house, the tattooing of women's faces,
arms, and hands, and the wearing of ear-
rings by men.'o The usage of poisons for
hunting arrows and setting traps was also
prohibited and some traditional ceremo-
nies forbidden.
In 1872 land taken from the Ainu was dis-
tributed to ethnic |apanese settlers, who
were encouraged to establish farms. In
1875-76 a |apanese style family registry
was set up for the Ainu, and the |apanese
tried to force them to change their
names to "proper" Japanese names. n
Although the Ainu were now adopted as
"equal citizens of |apan," the proclaimed
equality was an illusion. To guarantee
that there was a difference between the
two peoples, the government distin-
guished between Japanese citizens and
the adopted Ainu citizens in the family
registry with the word kyudojin (former
native) inserted before their names. i-' The
Ainu people, a familiar god in the region where he was
born. Bikky chose the name perhaps believing that
Nitnekamuy was casting an evil spell on him, perhaps
confronting his own mortality.
The flight from Sapporo to Tokyo was rough;
Bikky s gurney was lashed across the top of nine rows
of seats to keep him from tailing while rain and strong
winds kept the plane circling Haneda airport, seeking
an opportunity to land. Many airplanes turned away
to seek calmer skies, but the plane's captain knew how
serious Bikky's situation was and promised to try his
best. He circled through the rough air over Haneda for
nearly an hour, trying to land. Although everyone was
tearhil, the pilot finally forced the airplane down and
made a safe landing.
The long trip to Tokyo exhausted Bikky, but
he made a short speech for the opening, well-attended
Fig. A.2: Kanagawa Gallery opening.
XXJl
Who are the Ainu? continued
because of the artists popularity and the drama of his ill-
ness. His voice was weak, almost lost in the large gallery.
The audience strained to hear him. "A sculpture has to
be exhibited here if it is to be respected, it must come
through this space." It reflected not only his respect and
honor for this gallery, but also his strong motivation lor
completing this exhibition and attending the opening,
even at the risk of his life. The audience was moved to
tears, and a woman gave him a bouquet. Always popular
with women, Bikky continued, "I see that there are a lot
of my women fans here for my work." He still had his
sense of humor, and it broke the tension of the opening.
The Kanagawa Gallery had asked him to write
something for the exhibition catalogue, and he wrote
with ink and brush a single word kiki, which he had
coined, meaning "spirit of wood." The word was not
only appropriate for the subject of the exhibition, it also
expressed Ainu religious beliefs and Bikky s own deeply
held feelings, acknowledging the spirits who endowed his works in the same way
that his ancestors had for generations.
Bikky's return to Hokkaido was uneventful. For the next two days he
talked to his children, other relatives, and friends, and painted with his fingers. He
died jtist four days after the exhibition
opening, on January 25, 1989.
As the dramatic events of the
last days of Bikky's life unfolded, the
dynamic public side of Bikky's person-
ality was in the spotlight. Bikky was a
complex man, on one hand he seemed
like a Hollywood caricature of the driven
artist, a cigarette in the corner oi his
mouth while he attacked the wood with
a large axe, wood chips flying through
the air and punching holes in the ciga-
rette smoke. His large sculptures such as
Ainu were also forced to give up their
culture as hunters and gatherers and were
given un-tillable land to farm. Because the
lapanese believed the Ainu were not intel-
lectual equals, they established segregated
elementary schools with a lapanese cur-
riculum, and Ainu children were forbidden
to speak their own language.
At the time of Bikky Sunazawa's birth
in 1931, the Ainu had begun to be
more conscious of their identity and
heritage and began to demand an end
to the discriminatory treatment by the
lapanese government. The Hokkaido Ainu
Organization was founded to improve the
independent educational development of
the Ainu, free from lapanese involvement,
and a magazine, Ezo-no-hikari (Light of
Hokkaido ) was first issued in November
1930, giving the Ainu an organized voice
for the first time.'^
It was into this time of great social
upheaval that Bikky was born in the Ainu
community of Chikabumi on March 6, 1 931 .
C^^nt!^uu's on jhi^c wiv
or.
Fig. A. 3: AV/v cilligraphy.
XXlll
Who are the Ainu? continued
Sidebar Notes
1 . The Ainu refer to themselves as
"the People" or "the Humans."
2. Ohnuki-Tierney (1974:2).
3. Bickmore (1868), Siebold (1881),
Kodama (1970b).
4. Vivien de St Martin (1872).
5. Donitz (1874), Omoto and Harada
(1969).
6. Ohnuki-Tierney (1974:2), Black (1988:
25), Kodama (1 970b:73-4).
7. Koganei (1927), Turner (1989).
8. The jomon, thought by many scholars
to be the earliest culture in this part of
Asia, date back more than ten thou-
sand years. They are best known for
their distinctive pottery. The designs
on some ceramic and ivory humanoid
and animal figures are very similar to
historical designs of the Ainu, and the
ceramic animal spirit figures of the
jomon such as bear, killer whale, and
owl are also the main gods of the Ainu
pantheon. Recent DNA research has
shown that the Ainu are the direct
descendants of the jomon. The DNA
evidence, design similarities and an
apparent similarity in spiritual beliefs
over the last ten thousand years
lead me to believe that this artistic
evolution is among the oldest on-
going artistic traditions in the world
(Dubreuil 2003, 2002; Yamaura and
Ushiro 1999:39^6).
found in the Kaze (Wind) series symbolize that aspect
of his character. The overall treatment of these sculp-
tures evoke the quality of a primal spirit, expressing
the dynamism needed to stand against the most severe
test nature can offer. In contrast, Bikky could be as
sensitive and playful as a child. For example, the giant
Tongue of God speaks volumes of the private spiritual
man. On the other hand his small scale sculptures such
as found in Gozen 3-ji no Gangii (Toys at 3:00 A.M.)
reflect the whimsical, mischievous side of his personal-
ity. Everything about his work on the Toys at 3:00 A.M.
series is completely different than his large scale works;
they have a very smooth polished surface with meticu-
lous mechanical detail. You can almost picture the little
boy in him creating a favorite toy to give to the little
girl next door. If you can picture these, you have a view
of the extreme contrasts and the complexities that drove
this multi-talented artist.
Bikky s greatest contribution to modern art was
his ability to create a vision of nature that transcends
the mere natural forms found on earth. More than
simply manipulating wood and form, his belief in kiki,
the spirit of the tree, allowed him not only to listen to
the trees, but to give them another life. He constantly
tried to see the supernatural order of things beyond the
here and now. In so doing, he went beyond the concept of naturalism and reached
deeply into the Ainu soul. He once stated, "I don t consciously use Ainu themes,
but the foundation for my work and my way of expressing myself is different from
the Japanese. This can't help but affect my work."
Since Bikky s death in 1989, his reputation has grown not only in
Hokkaido, the traditional home of the Ainu, but also in the mainstream of the
Japanese art world. In 1990 a leading art critic, Ichiro Hariu, examined and dis-
cussed Bikkys work on the prestigious NHK (Japan Broadcasting Corporation)
TV program Nichiyo Bijutsu-kan (Sunday Gallery), which is dedicated to discus-
sions of fine art. Hariu stated Bikky 's work was deep and complex, but the more
XXIV
Who are the Ainu? continued
we know about the man, the more we appreciate his
artistic vision. Art critic Tadayasu Sakai and contem-
porary sculptor Shigeo Toya examined Bikky's work on
the same program in 200 1 . They were overwhelmed by
Bikky's ability to convey a sense that nature is more than
the trees in the forest, more than what we see arotmd us.
Bikky's work has been included in numerous
contemporary art exhibitions, and three large-scale ret-
rospective exhibitions have been held: Sunazaiva Bikky-
ten (The Exhibition of Bikky Sunazawa) was held in
Hokkaido Asahikawa Museum of Art in 1990; Tentacle:
Sunazawa Bikky-ten (Tentacle — The Exhibition of
Bikky Sunazawa) was held in the Hokkaido Museum
of Modern Art in 1994; and Kiki: Sunazaiva Bikky-ten
(Kiki: An Exhibition of Bikky's Art) was held in the
Museum of Contemporary Art, Sapporo, in 2001. At
the international level, Bikky's work was also exhibited
as a major component of the large-scale Ainu exhibition, Ainu: Spirit of a Northern
People at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History in Washington,
D.C. from 1999 to 2000.
Furthermore, important academic publications such as Showa no Bunka
Isan (Cultural Property of the Showa Period) and Showa no Bijutsu (Art of the
Showa Period), both published in 1990, included Bikky's work. Two Japanese-
language books about Bikky's work have been published: Sunazawa Bikky — Kaze
ni kiku (Bikky Sunazawa — Listening to the Wind) by Yasushi Asakawa in 1996
and Kaze no Oh — Sunazaiva Bikky no Sekai (King of Wind — The World of Bikky
Sunazawa) by Tomoo Shibahashi in 2001 . With this much interest, the value ol
his work has risen dramatically, and collectors are finding a great deal more work
than anyone suspected. While everyone knew Bikl<;y was prolific, we are all sur-
prised at each new find. Bill Reid was right, Bikky worked like a beaver, and his
legacy grows. It's time that the man and his work are more widely known through-
out the rest of the world.
9. Shinya (1977:1 74-9); Asaji, Miyatake,
and Nakama (1993:42-3).
10. Shinya (1977:183-5); Asaji, Miyatake,
and Nakama (1993:43). The tattoos
of the Ainu women were applied on
the lips, back of the hands, wrists,
and forearms, legs, and between the
eyebrows. Tattooing was done in
several sessions or phases starting at
an early age and finished by the age
of marriage. The tattoo was started on
the middle part of the upper lip and
was gradually enlarged to surround
the mouth, finally ending with a tall-
like extension laterally and upwards;
however, the tattoo design differed
depending on local regions (Kodama
1970b:l 16-37).
11. Asaji, Miyatake, and Nakama (1993:
43).
12. Sjoberg (1986:51)
13. Asaji, Miyake, and Nakama (1993:
82-3).
XXV
Chapter Synopses
Chapter 1 looks at the infltiences on Bikkys youth from his parents' pohti-
cal activism in their traditional Ainu commtmity in Hokkaido at the time of his
birth in 1931 through his relocation to Tokyo in 1953. We also see his fledgling
attempts to express the creativity that would completely engage Bikky throughout
his life. Chapter 2 covers Bikky 's exposure to Tokyo's intoxicating avant-garde art
world of the 1950s and early 1960s. There he launched his first abstract sculpture
series, Animals, and respected art critics began to notice his work. During the
period covered in Chapter 3 (1964-1978) Bikky returned to Hokkaido and began
two new themes, Tentacle (a maze), and Ki-men (Wooden Masks). In the 1970s,
the movement for Ainu civil rights embroiled Bikky, drawing him away from his
work. Chapter 4 (1978-1983) follows Bikky 's move from the urban environment
of Sapporo to Otoineppu, a remote northern area of Hokkaido with an ideal
working environment. Equipped with a large studio space and with an abundantly
rich forest that served as raw material for his work, Bikky began carving large
sculptures and creating "totem poles" to fill various local commissions.
Chapter 5 covers Bikky 's serendipitous meeting with the Canadian scholar
Douglas Sanders, who invited Bikky to Canada to meet Haida artist Bill Reid. In
Canada, fascinated with totem poles, Bikky visited various totem pole sites, and
his encounter with these powerful works was transforming. Working in the studio
of the highly respected and successful Bill Reid made him re-evaluate his cultural
identity in a more positive light. In Chapter 6 (1984—1989) we see an energized
Bikky fresh from his visit with Northwest Coast Native carvers working with a
new sense of freedom. He created many large pieces, including outdoor sculptures.
In spite of the terrible pain of terminal cancer, full knowledge of which was with-
held from him, Bikky didn't stop devoting himself intensely to the pursuit of his
creations. Chapter 7 examines Bikky 's career and how the triumphs of this charis-
matic and gifted Native artist helped change Ainu tourist art and established his
legacy as a role model for the future.
Sidebars throughout the volume provide information on Ainu culture, a
vital and complex component of Bikky s life and art.
Research Methodology
Being Ainu in Japan can be challenging, something I have experienced
first-hand. As a teenager, I had no interest in my Ainu heritage. Like most kids
I wanted to fit in, but it was hard to maintain a positive self-image when you're
told you look different too many times. Much of that changed, however, when my
sister gave me a wooden ring with intricate Ainu designs carved into it. I never saw
anything like it. It was as if I suddenly woke up to find incredibly beautiful Ainu
creativity all around me.
A decade later I met, fell in love with, and married an American Indian
of Mohawk and Huron descent. On our honeymoon, we went to the small cul-
tural center of the Chikabumi Ainu. There, in front of the museum, was a "totem
pole." I was vaguely familiar with the totem poles ot Alaska and Canada, but this
was very different; this totem pole had traditional Ainu design elements that I
could relate to. Next to the pole was a small sign that identified the artist as Bikky
Sunazawa. While I had heard of Bikky, I really did not know much about him, but
that day my life took a dramatic turn as I began to discover a vibrant new Ainu
art, and the story of the artist who created that art.
In my quest for information about this incredible man and his art, I
traveled from the deepest snows of the northernmost areas of Hokkaido, Japan,
to the humid, statuesque palm tree landscapes of Kyushu in southern Japan. I
interviewed many members of the Sunazawa family, including Bikkys younger
brother, Bikkys three wives, two of his four children, and many friends and drink-
ing buddies from his teen years and throughout his life, both Japanese and Ainu.
I also interviewed professional acquaintances, employers, art critics, Ainu scholars,
poets who wrote poems about Bikky, Japanese and Ainu museum curators and
directors, Ainu carvers, government officials, the photographer who chronicled the
last six years of Bikkys life, publishers, newspaper reporters, Ainti elders and Ainu
cultural leaders. I viewed and photographed as many of Bikky s works as possible,
those in private collections and in current exhibitions. I bought many older books
for background material, copied and translated all of Bikkys public statements and
stories about Bikky from newspapers, books, and his television appearances. This
involved many visits to the Hokkaido prelectural library, university and regional
libraries, and small village libraries. I went to two of his last working studios in
Japan and to Haida artist Bill Reid's former studio in Vancouver, B.C., Canada. I
interviewed every contact Bikky had during his working visit to Canada, including
Bill Reid, and have photographed several of Bikky s paintings purchased at his
Vancouver exhibition, as well as the two sculptures by Bikky that were left in
Canada. It has been an exciting journey, and it is not over yet.
Acknowledgments
This book. From the Playground of the Gods: The Life and Art of Bikky
Siuiazaioa would not have been completed without the help and support from
the Motoko Ikeda-Spiegel Memorial Foundation. I am also sincerely grateful to
Motoko's husband. Si Spiegel, for his support to complete this book in the mem-
ory of his beloved wife. Motoko's friendship, her wisdom, and her passion for the
Ainu gave me strength as I worked to give an accurate description of Ainu art and
culture for the Smithsonian Institution 1999 exhibition, Ainu: Spirit of a Northern
People. The opportunity given me by William W. Fitzhugh, Director of the Arctic
Studies Center, National Museum of Natural History, enable me to bring Bikky 's
work from Japan, which anchored the contemporary section of the exhibition.
This book also would not have been completed without the help and
support hom the people I met and talked with during my research beginning in
1993. While it's impossible to list everyone who was involved with my research, I
thank them for their contribution. However, special recognition must be recorded
for my many informants. First, and foremost, my thanks go to Bikky 's family
members: his three wives, Mineko Kano, Jtmko Takagi, and Ryoko Sunazawa; his
younger brother, Kazuo Sunazawa; and two of Bikky 's four children, Oki Kano
and Chinita Sunazawa. I also thank Bikky's many friends, especially Katsumi
Yazaki and Makoto Kawakami, who generously shared with me their personal
stories of Bikky, and who patiently continue to answer my endless questions.
I also appreciate the support from the Chief Curator, Shigeo Okuoka,
former Curator, Yasushi Asakawa and former Associate Curator, Toshiya Echizen
of the Hokkaido Museum of Modern Art in Sapporo. I am also indebted to
Kazuyoshi Ohtsuka, Professor at the National Museum of Ethnology, Osaka, for
sharing his research information on both the Ainu in general and his relationship
with Bikky.
Several people have given or sent me information and photographs that
have proved invaluable. For that assistance I thank the following people: Mitsuko
xxviii
Arita, Gosuke Yoshida, Irumi Sasakura, Reiko Saito, Shinobu Ishijima, Kazuhiko
Sugiyama, Miwako Tozuka, Taijin Tendo, Gozo Yoshimasu, Kaoru Tomihara,
Tsutomu Yamakawa and Shigeru Kayano, Cultural Leader for the Nibutani band
of Ainu. I especially thank Motomichi Kono who sent me a great deal of material
and photographs covering the historical background of Bikky's parents and the
Chikabumi band of Ainu of Asahikawa, and curators Toshie Fujishima and Konagi
Matsuo from the Kanagawa Prefectural Gallery for the generous loan of photo-
graphs and their valuable insights.
- I am also very grateful for the generosity of these people who shared their
time, talents, and memories with me through the often lengthy interviews during
the field research. They include art critics Yoshie Yoshida, Ichiro Hariu, and Art
Critic and Chief Curator of Yokohama Museum of Art, Atsushi Takeda; poets
Kazuko Shiraishi and Ryoken Torii; Bikky s later assistant, Mitchio Takagi; owner
of Aoki Gallery, Sotoji Aoki; Bikky's friend and collector, Hideyuki Hayashi;
from the Ainu Tourist Art and Folkcraft Company, the Kitanihon Mingei-sha,
president Takeji Takahashi, Hiroko and Tatsuji Takeishi; photographer Hiroaki
Kai; publisher and chief editor of the Kyoudoshi Asahikaiva (Local Magazine of
Asahikawa), Sanko Watanabe; faculty member Kenji Sanekata, from the Law
Department, University of Hokkaido; Itsuko and Makoto Ishihara, Bikky s friends
and owners of the bookstore, Sapporo-do, who also supplied me with rare, diffi-
cult to locate books on Ainu culture; Toyojiro Shitaku, Morio Senke, Nuburi Toko
and Shizuka Taira. Special thanks also goes to Akira Toko, former Chairman of
Akan Association of Ainu Cultural Preservation; Bikky's lifelong friends, Takeki
Fujito, Masako Kinoshita, Asahikawa Ainu Cultural Leader, Kenichi Kawamura,
Tome Kawamura, Noriko Kawamura, and Mitsuru Sugimura (1928-2001); and
the village officials in Otoineppu, Fiideaki Usami, Masayuki Chitenji, Yoshiaki
Nakanishi, Eiichi Miyakawa, Koji Hishita, and Shigeru Nakano.
My gratitude also goes to the people in Vancouver, Canada, who helped
my research and shared with me their rare collections of Bikky's work. They
include Takeo and Sumiko Yamashiro, Minorii and Mitsue Yamamoto, Kumi
Shanahan, Shogo Shimizu, and Marjorie Powell. I especially thank Setsuko and
Pierre Pieoche who arranged the opporttmity for me to photograph Bikky's works
in Vancouver and who invited my husband and me to stay in their cozy home
during the research. My very special thanks goes to Bill Reid (1920-1998) and
Martine Reid who not only accepted my interview requests, but loaned me Bikky's
xxix
scroll sketch of Tokyo no Hi (Night Lights of Tokyo, 1988). I shall always cherish
the memory of: wearing Martine Reid's beautiful vest with Northwest Coast indig-
enous formline designs and dancing to a drum beat provided by Bill Reid in his
living room. I also give particular thanks to Douglas Sanders, Professor of Law,
University of British Columbia, who shared with me his research materials on the
Ainu political situation in Japan, and the wonderful story of meeting Bikky, the
trip to the Gitksan area of northern British Columbia with Bikky, and the subse-
quent trip to Haida Gwaii (Queen Charlotte Islands) for the potlatch with Bikky
and his wife Ryoko, and Bill and Martine Reid.
My sincere thanks goes to my supervisory committee at University of
Washington in Seattle, Professors Robin Wright, Paul Berry, and Martha Kingsbury,
for their advice and encouragement throughout my early research period.
I thank Perpetua Press, especially Kathy Talley-Jones, for their insightful
advise, comments, and patience to edit the story of the complex artist Bikky
Sunazawa. I sincerely appreciate Elisabeth Ward's work on behalf of the Arctic
Studies Center, Smithsonian Institution, to complete the administrative pro-
cess after William Fitzhugh agreed to publish the book, and write the foreword.
Thanks to The Castle Press in Pasadena, who brought grace to the finished product
through their design and printing skills; and to Betty Adair for her creative collaber-
ation. And certainly, the enthusiastic support of the University of Hawai'i Press,
especially Patricia Crosby, Executive Editor, for their marketing and distributing
efforts of this publication.
Finally, I cannot express the depth of my thanks to my husband, David,
for his support, encouragement, and his great sense of humor throughout the long
process of research and writing. He patiently checked my English grammar and
writing. His photography, questions, editorial comments, and advice throughout
every step of the way has truly made my research possible. One of the memories I
hold most dear is David, who doesn t understand much Japanese, trying bravely to
stay awake during an interview that lasted several hours. By the sound of the inter-
view tapes, he wasnt entirely successful.
End Notes
1. Haida artist Bill Reid, interview December 19, 1993.
2. Bankalhi Sbinpo, November 18, 1983
3. Ibid.
Chapter i
Bikky's Early Life and Influences (1931-1953)
My mother asked me to embroider one of the garments
she was making. I was very young and, even though
I felt reluctant, I was attracted to the designs of garment.
I'm grateful that she taught me to embroider because the
Ainu designs are now second nature to me —
they're in my blood. '
The Ainu Homeland
"Tl)is northern country doesn't give up
winter easily, wheji winter loses the fight,
spring appears to be in combat against
the snoio and cold. The warm brilliant
rays of the sun seem to sing a song in
praise of victory. "'
Hisao Sunazawa — nicknamed "Bikky" ("frog" in the Ainu language) — was
born on March 6, 1931, in Chikabumi, a traditional Ainu community located near
Asahikawa City m central Hokkaido. Like other children Sidebar 2
in Chikabumi, Bikky enjoyed playing in the forest with
his brothers, visiting his grandparents, and learning how
to carve wood from his father. He was very lively, and
his grandparents gave him the nickname that would stick
with him for the rest of his life for jump-
ing around too much. Unlike other boys
in traditional Ainu communities, young
Bikky learned how to create embroidery
designs from his mother, a gender related
skill rarely passed along by women to
their sons. And because of his parents'
commitment to winning fair treatment
of the Ainu by the Japanese, Bikky was
exposed to political activism from his
youngest years.
Fig. A.2.1: Scenic siiot ot Hoi<i<aido.
i'.oui'unics on />i;,vi'
1
The Ainu Homeland continued
For millennia the Ainu people hunted
the forests of Hokkaido and fished its
rivers, gathering acorns and beech nuts,
berries and wild lily roots. They lived as
many indigenous people of the North do.
Salmon returning to the rivers in the fall
provided food and material for boots and
clothing. They ranged widely over the
mountains hunting deer and bear. Furs
and layers of heavy clothing protected
them against the harsh winters-heavy
snows that come with the winter winds
from Siberia.
Before the japanese cleared Ainu lands
for farming, much of Hokkaido — the
northernmost of japan's many islands —
was covered with forests: pine in the
north; larch, beech, and oak in the south.
The Ainu used wood from the forests to
build their houses and boats and even
processed elm bark for clothing, called
attush.
It was this natural environment that
stimulated Bikky's artwork: as he noted
toward the end of his life, "nature is one
of my themes. Art is in nature and nature
is an art. It is one of my artistic attitudes.
Knowing nature means to be honest with
yourself. "2
Sidebar Notes
1. Hanu ct al. (1989:97)
2. Yamakavva (1988:191)
A year after Bikky was born, his father Koa-
Kanno, his mother Peramonkoro, and three other
Ainu activists brought the infant along on the long
and exhausting trip to Tokyo to complain to Japanese
government officials about a land dispute with the
Hokkaido Prefectural Office." The dispute went back
to 1891 when uncultivated land near Bikky s birthplace
was supposed to be released to the Ainu as "indigenous
allowance land," but only a small fraction of it was —
and that land was threatened by a local developer.
As were many who challenged the Japanese
government at the time, the Ainu activists were called
communists. Government agents followed them,
and the police broke into their hotel. Years later,
Peramonkoro recalled, "we went to petition the vari-
ous government agencies such as the Ministry of the
Finance and Ministry of the Interior every day, but
everywhere we went, we had our pictures taken as
undesirable Ainu. It was not a pleasant experience."'
Although their campaign was a hardship for the
Fig. 1.1: photo of delegation in Tok)'o.
Sunazawa's, it was successful: two years
later, in 1934, the government returned
their land."* Koa-kanno and Peramonkoro
Sunazawa fought for and won Ainu rights
at a time when few indigenous people
worldwide had yet to win many battles
against discrimination.
Bikky's Parents
Both Koa-kanno and Peramonkoro
Sunazawa were committed leaders and
were respected throughout Ainu country.
Although they were rooted in the tradi-
tional Ainu way of life, they were also
pragmatic about the realities their children
would face in a changing world. They
encouraged Bikky and his brothers to
discover their strengths in the traditional
culture while also demonstrating what it
would take to live in a world dominated by the Japanese.
Bikky's father, Koa-kanno Sunazawa, was born
in 1893 in Shin-Totsugawa in Sorachi district in south-
western Hokkaido, and moved to Asahikawa in 1914.
His official Japanese name was Ichitaro, but he preferred
his Ainu name Koa-kanno, which means "two arrows
aren't necessary," celebrating his prowess as a hunter with
bow and arrow.' He was also a respected
woodcarver and grew rice to support his
family. Even though the farmland returned
to the Ainu was often poor, Koa-kanno
continued his fight for fairness, actively
organizing Ainu farmer and labor move-
ments, for which he was highly esteemed.
Despite his strong links to his traditional
Figure 1.2: Koa-kanno Sunazawa with bear carving.
Sidebar 3
Ainu Wood Carving
In traditionai Ainu households, men
carved virtually every utilitarian object,
from parts of the house Itself to serving
vessels and implements, out of wood.
Much of this carving is plain and empha-
sizes the wood's natural beauty. Like many
other carving cultures, such as those of
Canada's Northwest Coast, many every-
Fig. 1.3.1: Ikupasuy.
( Aniliintcs jm^c 5
3
culture, Koa-kanno, in another example of
his independence, converted to Christianity
and served as a Salvation Army officer before
World War II. He and his wife Peramonkoro
held Sunday school training at home for their
neighbors and children.''
During World War II Bikky's elder
half-brother Yoshio (Peramonkoro's son by
a previous marriage) was drafted into the
Japanese army, even though Koa-kanno did
not approve ot Ainu involvement in Japanese
imperial policies. When he was drinking he
would sing anti-war songs and shout that he
was "against the war and against the emperor
system. All human beings are the same. I
don't want my son to die for the emperor."''
Criticizing the emperors policies was a serious
crime punishable by death, and fearing
fanatical Japanese neighbors, Peramonkoro
covered Koa-kanno's head with bedclothes
so he couldn't be heard. Nonetheless, Koa-
kanno's independent views in the face of such strong disapproval had an indelible
impression on Bikky.
Like her husband, Peramonkoro, meaning, "child playing with a spatula,"
was known for her leadership. Born in Chikabumi in 1897, she was one of the few
Ainu women to graduate from high school at that time, finishing the Asahikawa
Sheika Woman's High School in 1915. Not only was Peramonkoro Sunazawa
well educated, but she proved to be entrepreneurial and resourceful in making
ends meet.
She taught Japanese dress-making, knitting, and embroidery to the Ainu
women in the community, which gave them skills needed to bring some income
to their families, she was respected as a master of traditional Ainu embroidery. A
traditionalist, she felt an obligation to hand down her skill and knowledge to the
next generation. She did not hesitate, however, to cross gender barriers to teach her
son Bikky how to embroider traditional garments when she noticed his interest in
gure 1.3: Peramonkoro Sunazawa
art, especially his interest in Ainu designs. Bikky recalled:
"My mother asked me to embroider one of the garments
she was making. I was very young and, even though I
felt reluctant, I was attracted to the designs of garment.
I'm grateful that she taught me to embroider because the
Ainu designs are now second nature to me — theyVe in
my blood.
Not only did Peramonkoro strive to perpetuate
Ainu culture, she was also the backbone of the Young
Ainu Women's Association. In this role she helped care
for older Ainu women and younger women who needed
help. Many Ainu women in the community respected
her as an advanced and independent woman while at the
same time she was known and admired for her knowl-
edge ofyukar, the oral epics of the Ainu. Again, his
mother influenced her son as the yukar played an impor-
tant part in Bikky's art in later years.
As a tribute to their individual leadership,
Ainu scholar Genjiro Aral recognized Koa-Kanno and
Peramonkoro separately by including them in his book,
Ainu Jinbutsu-den (The Legendary Ainu) in 1992.
Bikky's Childhood (1931-1942)
With the exception of his early trip to Tokyo,
Bikky spent the remainder of his childhood in his birth-
place, the Chikabumi kotan (traditional Ainu commu-
nity). Even here, however, Bikky's youth was a mixture
of two cultures, a dramatic change from the traditional
Ainu way of life to assimilation into the Japanese society.
His grandparents lived in a traditional Ainu house next
to his parents' Japanese-style house and spoke to him in
the Ainu language, especially when scolding him. At the
same time, his parents spoke to him mostly in Japanese.
Bikky went back and forth between the two homes.
Ainu Wood Carving continued
day objects are beautifully decorated with
intricate patterns similar to those found
on women's garments. Wooden carvings
were either functional within the house-
hold or had a spiritual use; there are few
examples of toys or artworks created only
for purposes of self-expression.
The most important object carved for
spiritual purposes is the ikupasuy or
prayer-stick (Fig. 1.3.1). Normally thirty
to forty centimeters (eleven to fifteen
inches) long and three to four centimeters
(a little more than an inch) wide, it is usu-
ally made from yew or willow wood. It is
carved in a somewhat flattened shape and
usually rounded edges and tapered at one
end. Even though the carving area is lim-
ited, the Ainu have had an aggressive and
creative relationship with the space and
used an interesting juxtaposition of low-
and high-relief designs that range from
very complex to quite simple.
Traditionally, living organisms such as
people or animals were never used in any
Ainu design for fear of angering the evil
spirits, wen kamuy, but the ikupasuy is an
exception. They are carved with creative
examples of the owner's personal spirit
totems in artistic renderings ranging from
exact realism to the most abstract forms.
Totem examples include bears, killer
whales, seals, otters, birds, fish, snakes,
and flowers. While human-made items
also appear, especially boats, there are no
known depictions of humans.
The ikupasuy is generally referred to as
"a mustache-lifter," or "libation wand"
in anthropological literature. It's an
Fig. 1.3.2: Inaw.
Continues oil /'w^c 6
5
Ainu Wood Carving continued
understandable mistake because as part
of any ritual in which sake is consumed,
it appears that the men hold their mous-
tache up from the sake with the ikupasuy
when drinking. Actually, they are dipped
in the sake to sprinkle it on an inaw or
other important object to help send their
prayers (Fig. 1 .3.2). The tapered end of
the ikupasuy is carved with a parunpe
(tongue). Its purpose is to communicate
with the gods in the pivotal role of media-
tor between humans and the gods, and
it identifies the worshiper to the gods, for
example, as a hunter or fisher or grateful
supplicant. An itokpa (patrilineal ancestor
sign) is also carved on the ikupasuy.
Although the ikupasuy has received much
attention, the inaw is also an important
Ainu ceremonial carving. Beautiful in
its simplicity, the inaw is usually a finely
shaved tree limb tufted at one end in
various lengths from less than one foot
to more than six feet. It acts as the most
important messenger to the gods and is
never reused after a specific ceremony. i
The Ainu carve the maw from different
types of trees depending on its purpose.
They use willow and dogwood, which
have a fine grain and light color, for
"good gods" who brought prosperity and
welfare. When they offer the inaw to "bad
gods" such as the gods of disease, they
chose trees with wood that smelled bad
or that had thorns.
preferring to stay with his grandparents. He loved the
traditional way of the Ainu.
Bikky's cousin Yoshiaki described an event
that shows the mix of cultures even in their traditional
community:
/// the early spring one year, my mother and I went
to visit Bikky and his mother while Uncle Koa-kanno
(Bikky's father) was away hunting. I enjoyed play-
ing with Bikky i>ery much and after playing we would
get sweets to eat. When ive got there we found many
mothers, children, and older women with traditional
tattooing. Salvation Army ojfcers were also there as
they often came to Bikky s house. Everyone was listen-
ing seriously to the Salvation Army people ivhile they
told Christian stories. We went outside where there were
pine trees and other types of trees, but most importantly
there was an Ainu altar (nusa) that displayed many
bear skulls that Uncle Koa-kanno hunted. This type of
altar was found at every Aitiu hunter's house including
my own. Both Bikky and I were very proud of what our
fathers had done.
A few days later Bikky rushed into my house and
said "Yo [his cousin's nickname], my dad has just caught
a bear. Come and eat the meat in my house. " I immediately visited their
house with my mother. Bikky's house was already crowded with many
guests. Many men already finished the kamuy-nomi, Ainu prayers, and
they enjoyed talking about hunting!^ Uncle Koa-kanno was in a good mood
as he rubbed his long beard gently and contentedly. Women began singing
Ainu songs. The hot bear meat soup was passed around the guests. This was
a very old Ainu custom. When a villager hunted a bear, his family invited
all the village people to share their good-fortune dinner.^^^
Both Christianity and the traditional Ainu beliefs were present in Bikky's
world. His parents held Sunday school and invited the Salvation Army officers to
6
their home, and they performed a mixture of Christian
and traditional Ainu prayers on every occasion.
Nonetheless, Koa-kanno was well known as the author
of especially revered and sacred kamuy-nomi, prayer-like
songs or poems that send messages of appreciation to the
gods. Despite his exposure to Christianity, Bikky never
espoused this system of beliefs and throughout his life
maintained traditional Ainu beliefs.
Bikkys father encouraged him to find his own
way, but discouraged him from his constant drawing or
carving, even if it was traditional. He usually scolded
him, saying, "dont do carvings, do your school work
and study hard."" In contrast, Peramonkoro was under-
standing of his creative skills, and she bought Bikky
crayons and paper even though the family was extremely
poor, so impoverished that she sold azuki beans, used
to make sweets, door to door in the Japanese neighbor-
hoods to make the money needed to buy art supplies for
Bikky
Bikky's Youth (1943-1953)
Until he was six years old, Bikky had little con-
tact with Japanese children. When the segregated school
system ended in 1937 and an "equal" educational system
was created for the Ainu children, Bikky started elemen-
tary school with Japanese children. This was a painful
period for Bikky and other Ainu children, because they
were constantly ridiculed by their Japanese classmates.
Nonetheless, Bikky graduated from the Chikabumi
Elementary School in Asahikawa City in 1943 at the age
of twelve and from junior high two years later.
World War II ended with Japan's defeat in
1945, making life, which had never been easy for the
Sunazawa's, even more difficult still. Koa-kanno and
Ainu Wood Carving continued
During ceremonies, nnen set several inaw
in front of their altar and would dip the
ikupasuy in sacred sake and then sprinkle
it over the inaw while praying. Inaw were
also placed around the interior of the
house. The /now for the god of fire was
placed in the fire pit and many inaw were
placed throughout the home. The east
side of the chise, or house, had a window
that was called a "god window," where
another type of inaw was also placed.
Depending on the area, this window
would point toward the mountains or
wherever the important gods could be
found. Inaw were all made as offerings
to different gods, and stayed where they
were placed until they fell into decay
except for the inaw for the fire god,
which was burned after use.^ Both the
ikupasuy and the inaw are very much in
use today — not only in public and private
ceremonies, but for use in the modern
home. 3
The Ainu men also carve other spiritual
artifacts. A man's ceremonial headdress
sometimes included totem animals such
as bears, killer whales, or owls. These
ceremonial headdresses are worn by
male participants for the iyomante (bear
spirit sending ceremony). Also used in
the Iyomante ceremony are special blunt
arrows carved to shoot the bear. The
arrow is called heper-ay (flower arrow). It
resembles a partially open flower, and the
Ainu believe that shooting these arrows,
which normally bounce off the bear,
excite the bear gods play just before they
actually kill the bear. The arrow is carved
with the ancestral itokpa to let the gods
know who sent the bear god's spirit back
to gods' land. Many scholars have made
the mistake of thinking the bear is a sac-
rifice to a god, when in reality the bear
is god.
Sidebar Notes
1. Fu)imura (1982:76-7).
2. Takakura (1970:634-5).
3. Dubreuil (1999b, 2003).
7
Bikky, who was then fifteen, attempted to farm the land given the Ainu seven
kilometers hom Asahikawa City. They were not successful, however, and it became
almost impossible to make a living. To earn a small income, Koa-kanno sold sou-
venir woodcarvings in the Lake Akan tourist resort.'"
Bikky, with the encouragement of his father, decided to become a
dairy farmer and left Chikabumi at the age of sixteen to attend the Prefectural
Agriculture Training School in Tokachi, in southern Hokkaido, in 1947. At the
school he continued to experience the racism from Japanese students and teach-
ers to which he had been subjected in elementary and junior high school, but he
nonetheless completed his year there and returned to Chikabumi in 1948 with
his new knowledge. He and his father joined forces with ten Ainu households
and tried to cultivate the land in Ubun, a suburb of Asahikawa City, and estab-
lish a new Ainu kotan, Ainu settlement. A cousin working alongside Bikky on the
undertaking recalled:
It was a bard life with only a bonfire for beat and an oil lamp for
ligbt. We lived in a bamboo shed. Our meals were mainly cooked
butterbur stalks and corn mixed with a little rice. We worked hard
chopping wood, gathering bamboo leaves, and digging up tree roots.^^
Even though the work was grueling, Bikky sketched the farm animals:
Afer I finished supper in the shed, I began making sketches of
the cattle and horses I had worked with during the day. In the begin-
ning I just wanted to draw a horse as it was
and capture its sturdiness and strength. But the
more I drew, the more I wanted to capture the
essence of the horse — and eventually the animals
I drew turned into abstract forms.
Unfortunately, none of Bikky's abstract
animal sketches are known to survive, but an extant
abstract pen drawing [Figure 1.4], one of his earliest
known works, shows organic tubular material with
tufts at each end floating in space that may reflect the
kind of abstract form with which he experimented.
Horses were among his earliest woodcarving subjects,
and at least one of these carvings remains, a simple
Figure 1.4: Teenage abstract drawing.
Figure 1.5: Teenage horse carving.
Standing horse [Figure 1.5]. Bikky carved its body with a chisel to emphasize its
contours. The facial features are minimally done: the eyes are just carved-out holes,
and the ears are two simple projections. The use of bold chisel or scalper strokes
suggests a moment of repose for the serene and solitary horse.
Bikky's isolation in Ubun gave him time to think about the racial prejudice
he had confronted since his childhood. "When I worked the farm, racial prejudice
was so severe, I began to hate the Japanese. I was much more comfortable with
cattle and horses than people.""^" Struggling to fight racial prejudice, he realized
even at the age of seventeen that the core of his problem was his own feelings of
inferiority. He knew that while he could do little at that time to change the dis-
crimination against the Ainu, he could change himself:
It came to me that the Ainu should not be ashamed of who they are
or hide the fact that they are Ainu. I didn't want to hide my Ainu iden-
tity, hut I didn't want to hide behind it either. I thought I should grapple
squarely with it. It was then that I made up my mind to use tny child-
hood Ainu nickname 'Bikky instead of my legal Japanese name, Hisao.^^
9
Thus "Bikky" became his artistic signature. In another break from being
considered Japanese and an additional declaration for cultural independence, he
spelled the name with Roman characters, extremely unusual at that time.'*^ He
used the name for the rest of his life.
In spite of their hard work, it was difficult to make a living as farmers, so
Bikky joined his father and began to produce souvenir woodcarvings to sell in the
Lake Akan resort area. In another example of Peramonkoro's entrepreneurial spirit,
during the summer tourist seasons, she owned and operated a "gift shop." At first
simply bamboo mats spread on the ground, eventually it grew into a real gift shop
that is still owned by the Sunazawa family. Bikky contributed much of his seasonal
work from 1948 to 1953 to the family business.
Revolutionizing Ainu Tourist Art (1 952-1 953)
In the late 1940s, major tourist resorts opened in Hokkaido, including
the newly established Ainu Kotan at Lake Akan; and they began to attract tourists
from the other parts ol Japan, increasing the demand lor Ainu souvenirs such as
carved bears. Bikky's lather, already a well-known bear carver, asked Bikky to go
to his cousins house to learn the techniques of bear carving. Bear carving bored
Bikky, however, and he was asked to leave after a month's study because he didn't
want to carve bears as the other people did — one of his bears had horns, for exam-
ple. He wanted to be different, and he was.
Bikky's first contribution to Ainu art came at age twenty-one when he
created wooden jewelry with intricate designs, variations on the traditional pat-
terns he had learned h-om his mother. [Figure 1 .6] He pushed the designs further,
developing what came to
be known as the Bikky
mon'yo (Bikky patterns),
which he carved into
pendants and earrings,
cigarette cases, small
boxes, pipes, jewelry
boxes, candle holders,
and many other small
Figure 1.6: Rings with Bikky nwii'yo.
10
items. The objects carved with the Bikky monyo sold well, and many Ainu artists
began copying them. To protect their designs, Bikky and his friends created a
jewelry association, but unfortunately never submitted the necessary paperwork to
copyright their work. While he didn t know it at the time, he had revolutionized
Ainu tourist art, giving it new vitality. Today, "Bikky patterns" are found on many
items wherever Ainu tourist art is sold.
Leaving Home (1952-1953)
In 1952 Bikky s private and artistic life changed dramatically. Although
proud of his success as a craftsman, he also created abstract paintings. Mineko
Yamada, an art student from Kamakura traveling around Hokkaido on holiday,
visited Bikkys mother's gih shop in Akan with a friend. As art students they appre-
ciated Bikkys abstract paintings and began a conversation with him. By the end of
Mineko's week-long stay in Hokkaido, Bikky had fallen in love with her and asked
her to marry him — but she refused and returned home to Kamakura. A week later
Bikky followed her, taking only his clothes, his carving knives, and some bears
and jewelry he had carved. He spent the next week at Mineko's parents' house in
Kamakura but had to return home when he ran out of money.
If the year 1952 was a year of intoxicating adventure, 1953 was a year of
devastating loss. Bikky s beloved lather Koa-kanno died unexpectedly of a stroke
in August. Koa-kanno had urged him repeatedly to go his own way, and Bikky
decided to leave his hometown for Tokyo to pursue painting.' ' More important,
he wanted to be near Mineko, the first of his many loves. In the fall of 1953, he
gathered his carving tools and paint brushes and jumped on the night train to
Tokyo.
End Notes
1. Ogawa Sanae (1989:7-9).
2. The three other Ainu activists were Genjiro Arai, a self-taught scholar; his wife, Michi Arai; and Kaniegoro
Ogawa (Arai 1992:151^5; Asaji, Miyatake, and Nakama 1993:78-9; Hokkai Tunes. June 11, 1932).
3. Arai (1992:80).
4. Asaji, Miyatake, and Nakama (1993:79).
5. An Ainu could have several names at different times during his or her lifetime. For example, a person
could develop special skills such as being a great himter or a storyteller, etc., which could cause them to
take on a new name (S. Kodama 1970a:472-3).
11
John Batchelor (1854-1944) came into contact with the Ainu as an Anglican Church of England lay mis-
sionary in 1877. In 1879 he joined the Church Missionary Society of London and continued his work
among the Ainu of Hokkaido following his retirement from the Society in 1924. He wrote more than
forty articles and books on Ainu culture, including the first Ainu dictionary, hi 1888 Dr. Batchelor founded
the Airin Gakko (Loving Neighbors School), the first of several schools for the Ainu, but was forced to
close all the schools in 1905 and 1906 because ol the Japanese Ainu assimilation policy. Matsu Kannari
(1875-1961), one ol his converts, became a missionary and eventually settled in Chikabumi to preach the
gospel (Nthoti KirisutO'kyo Rekishi Daijiten 1988:350). Because of her extraordinary ability to recite j)/?^^,«r
(she would contribute to the making of twenty volumes of the Ainu's epic oral poems), she became close
friends with Bikky's mother, Peramonkoro, who was also highly respected for ]\er: yukar recitations. This
led to the conversion of Bikky's mother and father to Christianity (interview with Kazuo Sunazawa, May
13. 1995).
Hariu et al. (1989:102), Yiimakawa (1988:205).
Ogawa (1989:13).
Kamny-no}ni are prayer like songs or poems that send words or messages ol appreciation to the gods for
help, tor example, tor a successtul hunt.
Mamiya (1989:5).
Intetview with Kazuo Sunazawa April 8, 1994.
Lake Akan is in mountainous eastern Hokkaido and is a well-known tourist area. It has been and contin-
ues to be important to the Ainu. An Ainu kotiin (Ainu settlement) was established as both an Ainu com-
mercial enterprise and cultural center.
Mamiya (1989:6).
Yamakawa (1988:183).
A specialized chisel with a circtdar cutting edge.
Kitamura (1963:94).
Yamakawa (1988: 180-2). In tact, Bikky became somewhat obstinate about the name. In Japan, the hon-
orific "san," is always put at the end of the name. Bikky did not like being referred as "Bikky-san" [Hokkai
Times, October 29, 1981) and would correct anyone who used the honorific. Even his children called him
Bikky, even though it is extremely rare for a child to call his or her father anything but "lather." While his
early work was signed "Bikki, " using both the Japanese katakaiia or Romanized written languages, all later
known works use the English spelling "Bikky. ' Neither his family nor his triends remember exactly when
he changed his spelling from "Bikki" to "Bikky."
Kazuo Sunazawa, Bikky's brother, said that while Bikky wanted his name to be an Ainu name as a state-
ment against the dominant Japanese culture, he also thought the Ainu name with the English spelling was
kakkoii ("cool" or "sexy") (interview May 14, 1995). Bikky gave three ot his four children Ainu names:
his eldest son Chikaru, his daughter Chinita, and his second son Auta. The youngest son was named after
Bikky's father, Ichitaro, but it was done using different kanji characters.
Although Bikky studied the paintings exhibited in the galleries and museums in and around Tokyo, he
never studied painting or other artistic expressions in the formal sense. It was extremely rare for a seri-
ous artist not to have formal artistic training if he or she wanted to be recognized and accepted in the
mainstream Japanese art field. While Bikky admitted to having an inferiority complex about his ethnic
background, he never harbored similar teelings about his lack ot a fotmal art education. Bikky had great
confidence in his artistic talents and believed that if you had talent, it was up to you to perfect it: no one
could "formally " teach vou talent.
13
Chapter 2
The Night Train to Tokyo: Biki<y's Art Evolves
(1953-1964)
/ learned more from the free-spirited conversations with
artists than from anything else.... We all had the common
opinion that a work cant be called art if it doesn't have
eroticism in it.^
Until Bikky visited Mineko Yamada in Kamakura in 1952, he had seldom
left the Ainu homeland. The island of fiokkaido had emerged from World War
II relatively unscathed, and Bikky had not seen the devastation that the war had
brought to most of the southern half of Honshu. As the
night train from the north neared Tokyo, he was excited
to be traveling to the capital but shocked to see the
bombed-out areas, and how much had been rebuilt in
the seven years since the end of the war.
The years immediately following the war had been
grim for all Japanese, but the economic revival orchestrated
by the government after the war had nonetheless been
phenomenal. By the mid-1950s the Japanese econ-
omy was so strong that the nation had become a
competitor in many world markets. Losing the war
had humiliated the Japanese, but it also gave them a
chance to start over and explore freedoms they had
never known before.
This was particuktrly true in Japans various
and distinct art worlds. During the 1950s many Fig. 2.4. i: HiitoHc photo of curio shop.
Sidebar 4
Origins of Ainu Tourist Art
Ainu men have traditionally been master
wood carvers, and many of their beauti-
fully worked bowls, knife scabbards, and
tobacco boxes were created as trade
items and then later as objects sold to
tourists. The Ainu had been active traders
not only with the japanese but also with
neighboring peoples from China, Korea,
Russia, and other Native groups and later
I jhixe 16
15
Origins of Ainu Tourist Art
continued
new art organizations were formed: the Modern Art
Association was formed in 1950 and the Kanagawa
Prefectural Museum of Modern Art, located in the city
of Kamakura, just outside of Tokyo, opened as Japan's
first museum of modern art in 1951. In the following
year the National Museum of Modern Art (now called
the Tokyo National Museum of Modern Art) was
established.' The opening of these large governmental
museums stimulated other museums to be established
at both the local governmental and private levels.
Exhibitions of independent artists, such as Andepandan-
ten, were held in major cities including Kyoto, Tokyo,
and Sapporo.^ These independent exhibitions, spon-
sored by the Yomiuri Newspaper Company, allowed
the work of contemporary artists to be seen without
going through the political selection process that many
Japanese art organizations funded by the government
required. '
Before the war, Japanese sculptors pursued
Western traditions of figurative sculpture and were
strongly influenced by the French Romantics, especially
Auguste Rodin (1840-1917). Very little nonrepre-
sentational sculpture appears to have been created or
exhibited. In the mid-1950s, however, the work of
several contemporary Italian sculptors was exhibited in
Tokyo, greatly affecting Japanese sculptors searching
for new artistic directions. The sculptures of Emilino
Greco (1913-1995) and Pericle Fazzini (1913-1987)
were exhibited in the Third Japan International Art
Exhibition in Tokyo in 1955 and large-scale exhibi-
tions of the works of Umberto Boccioni (1882-1916)
and Marino Marini (1901—1966) were held in Tokyo in 1961.'' Sculptures were
also beginning to be placed in outdoor environments. When Isamu Noguchi, an
American sculptor of Japanese ancestry, visited Japan in 1950, he noted a relation-
ship between sculpture and architecture'' Although the Japanese didn't grasp this at
with Dutch merchants. In exchange for
their wooden objects, fish, and furs, they
received rice, sake, tobacco, cloth, and
metal goods.
In the seventeenth century, unscrupulous
Japanese traders began to underpay the
Ainu for their furs and demanded money
for their goods; the Ainu also had to pay
taxes to the Japanese government. To
raise more cash, the Ainu began produc-
ing more of their traditional intricately
carved work and began selling household
utensils such as spatulas, ladles, and
weaving tools to the Japanese. They also
began to create other wooden carvings
such as towel hangers and brush holders,
items that were not traditionally used by
the Ainu.
As the work of Ainu artists was becoming
popular throughout Japan, carvers began
to get more commissions to design and
carve specific works. Contests were held
for the most beautifully carved wooden
objects,' and soon, the names of some
of the most skilled and established Ainu
carvers were recognized and recorded in
nineteenth- and early twentieth-century
Japanese historical materials.^ Some
Japanese may have understood and
appreciated the guality of the carvers'
works and the artistry of the designs, but
most simply considered them to be exotic
curios.
With the Meiji Restoration in 1868,
the Ainu were forced to assimilate into
Japanese society, and Ainu customs, reli-
gion, and language were forbidden. The
Japanese government demanded that the
Ainu learn agricultural practices using the
land-allotment program as an induce-
ment. Because the Ainu were not trained
as farmers and the land was not suitable
for agriculture, most were not successful.
As a result, many tried to support them-
selves by selling their carvings.
16
first, by the late 1950s sculpture's environmental fianc-
tions were beginning to be explored, and group outdoor
sculpture exhibitions were held in front of the Kanagawa
Museum. Japanese sculptors also began to participate
actively in international sculpture symposiums/
A New World
As a poor and isolated youth, Bikky had not
been exposed to any art other than Ainu art — not even
Japanese art. Although his parents were extraordinary,
their world was limited primarily to things Ainu. Bikky
was a product of that environment, a farm boy with a
great deal of raw artistic talent. "Bikky wasn't familiar
with fine art at all. He didn't even know of Picasso or
Matisse at that time," Mineko remembered.''*
Mineko, on the other hand, had been educated
in some of the finest schools in Japan, including the
Musashino Art College, and knew many avant-garde
artists in the greater Tokyo area. She introduced Bikky
to this group of young, edgy intellectuals. '' Art historian
Alexandra Munroe described the climate of the vanguard
movement of the Japanese artists of the 1 960s as "a
grotesque and absurd imagination of the primal forces
of sex, madness, and death, a preoccupation with aber-
rant forms of human nature.""' This perspective can be
seen in the work of one of Bikky 's close friends, Hijikata
Tatsumi (1928—1986). Hijikata would become famous
as the originator of Ankoku Butoh or "Dance of Utter
Darkness." He was known for his intense and passionate
performances, expressions of the primal nature of human sexuality.
Another good friend was Tatsuhiko Shibuzawa (1928-1987)." Shibuzawa
came from a prominent family that had fallen on hard times after the death of his
father, a banker, although they continued to maintain a literary salon.'" Shibuzawa
had recently graduated from Tokyo University with a major in French literature
Origins of Ainu Tourist Art
continued
One of the earliest known references by a
foreign tourist from the West buying the
artwork of both Ainu men and women
was made by English traveler Isabella Bird
on August 23, 1878:
I was anxious to help them by
buying some of their handiwork . . .
a tobacco box and pipe-sheath, and
knives with carved handles and scab-
bards, and for three of these I offered
2 1/2 dollars . . . they [said] they [the
items] were not worth more than 1
dollar 10 cents, and they would sell
them for that; and I could not get
them to take more. ... I [also] bought
a bow and three poisoned arrows, two
reed-mats, with a diamond pattern on
them in reeds stained red, some knives
with sheaths, and a bark cloth dress. I
tried to buy the sake-sticks [ikupasuy]
with which they make libations to their
gods, but they said it was "not their
custom" to part with the sake-stick of
any living man.^
She goes on to say that the men "for
indoor recreation' carve tobacco-boxes,
knife-sheaths, sake-sticks, and [weaving]
shuttles, and the women weave a nearly
indestructible cloth [made from elm bark]
... for barter, and the lower class of
Japanese are constantly to be seen wear-
ing the product of Ainu industry."4
During the 1880s the Japanese began
to develop Hokkaido commercially and
as a tourist destination, connecting the
island to the main Japanese islands with a
network of ferries and railways. Japanese
merchants opened curio shops, selling
traditional Ainu household utensils such
as platters, bowls, and spoons; and later,
the popular carved bear figures. The
earliest known shop was the Yamada
CoiitiiiUL's uii pas^c 18
17
Origins of Ainu Tourist Art
continued
when he met Bikky. While Shibuzawa worked as a part-
time proofreader tor the Iwanami Pubhshing Company
to help support his family, he began translating the
works of the Marquis de Sade, and he later became
an authority on Sade's works. There is no doubt that
Bikky s ideas about sexuality influenced his later work,
very likely inspired and influenced by Shibuzawa,
Hijikata, and other friends and acquaintances.
It was at Hijikatas dance performances that
Bikky met Yukio Mishima (1925-1970), an important
writer of fiction, drama, and essays whose sensational
death by harakiri, a ritualistic suicide by disembowel-
ment, captured the world's attention on November 25,
1970. Bikky probably did not know Mishima well, but
was very likely familiar with his work. ' ^
Hijikatas Ankokn Butoh, Shibuzawas transla-
tions of and writings on the works of Marquis de Sade,
and Mishimas explicitly sexual writings sum up the
landscape of the time. In a letter Bikky sent his close
friend, film maker Katsumi Yazaki, in 1981 he noted:
"I learned more "good" from the free-spirited
conversations with the various artists (from various
fields) in Shibuzawas house than from anything else
We all had the common opinion that a work can't be
called art if it doesn't have eroticism in it."'^
The 1950s and the beginning of the 1960s
were an exciting and stimulating time for Bikky as an
artist and a person. Mineko said, "Bikky absorbed the
intellectual world as a sponge absorbs water."'"' Bikky 's exposure to his girlfriend's
intellectual friends allowed him to grow to the point that he could confront the
insecurities he had about being Ainu:
/ moved to Kaniakura at the age of 21 or 22. When I met people
aspiring to become artists, I noticed one thing, that their ethnic iden-
tity had nothing to do with their work and how they were judged by
others. My being judged as an artist has nothing to do with whether
Collectible Curio Shop, which opened in
1900, Asahikawa.5 Another shop opened
around 1903 and gave public demon-
strations of carving and sewing by Ainu
men and women in front of the shop.*
Because of the demand, some Ainu from
the Chikabumi kotan, where Bikky was
born, began selling their work directly to
the public, which allowed them to keep
their profit.
In 1 91 7, in an effort to control profits for
the Japanese, Asahikawa City enacted a
policy that forced the Ainu to sell their
products to the city, which then con-
trolled the distribution and sale of their
work. The city secured raw materials
through the local forest office and sold
them at cost to the Ainu. The city also
invited an instructor, Kensei Saito (1894-
1966), from the Tokyo Art School to
teach the Ainu to use chisels and Japanese
methods of woodcarving' — even though
the Ainu had been extremely proficient
and creative artists for hundreds of years.
Around this time the Ainu began creat-
ing various figures now known as "Ainu
dolls," nipopo^ for the tourist trades, even
though creating human figures other
than for spiritual reasons went against
traditional Ainu beliefs. Ainu tourist art
experienced very little change between
the 1930s and 1952, when Bikky, then
twenty-one years old, became disenchant-
ed with carving bears and other estab-
lished Ainu tourist art items. Breaking with
tradition, he introduced jewelry with Ainu
designs to the Akan tourist kotan, which
in time, changed the focus of Ainu tour-
ist art throughout Hokkaido.'' He created
18
I'm an Ainu or a Japanese. The only important
thing is what you're thinking and what you are
trying to do}^'
Other than jewehy and small tourist art works
there is little record of any art that Bikky may have pro-
duced during his first two years in Kamakura. Its quite
possible that he was so overwhelmed by his new environ-
ment that he had little time left to create art. And, of
course, it's possible that any artwork that he may have
done has been lost. Then, on February 21, 1955, his first
professional accomplishments were recorded, however
tersely. He submitted a painting, no title recorded, to
the fifth Modern Art Association Exhibition (MAAE).'^
Whether this first submission was actually a paint-
ing or a drawing is in question due to comments he
made thirty-three years later that his first submissions
were drawings because he "couldn't afford to buy oil
" 1 8
pamts.
Around this time, Bikky and Mineko, who were
now living together, established a studio to produce
tourist items with Bikky 's designs {Bikky mo)iyo).^'^
While Bikky was starting to exhibit his drawings and
paintings, there wasn't much money coming in, so he
turned to his woodcarvings to make a living. Bikky and
Mineko lived in Kamakura from autumn to spring to
produce tourist items and then moved to Akan to sell
them during the summer tourist season in the family
gift shop.'"
Bikky Focuses on Sculpture
In the late 1950s Bikky began to concentrate
his artistic talent on carving sculptures from wood,
often using wood he found in scrap heaps. There
appear to be two main reasons why Bikky shilted his
Origins of Ainu Tourist Art
continued
Fig. 2.4.2: Bilvky Muii'yo.
what was to become known as his signa-
ture design Bikky mon'yo (Bikky patterns).
Although he didn't realize his impact on
Ainu tourist art at that time, he opened
the door for Ainu artists to broaden their
scope. His style of jewelry has been con-
stantly popular since then, and while most
artists in the Ainu tourist industry copied
his designs, no one has surpassed the
uniqueness of his style. Today the omni-
present Bikky patterns are found wherever
Ainu tourist art is sold.'O
Sidebar Notes
1. Sjoberg (1993:54).
2. R. Saito (1994:147)
3. Bird (1881:64-5).
4. ibid. (66-67).
5. Ishijima (1980a:2).
6. ibid. (3).
7. K. Saito (1979:4).
8. Ishijima (1980b:3).
9. This is not to imply that tlie bear
and other Ainu tourist art items
were replaced by Ainu jewelry. I
believe that all early Ainu tourist art
will have a place as collectors' items.
10. Dubreuil (1999b, 2003)
19
interest from painting to sculpture."' He suggested the first reason when he point-
ed out his physical relationship to his art:
Two-diynensional work like painting or drawing didn't challenge
me enough physically. Not only am I, as an Ainu man, fundamentally
a carver of wood, but I also need to work hard and get involved
physically with my work. "
Bikky also began to be influenced by the work of other artists. The
Bridgestone Art Museum in Tokyo held a one-man show in 1954 of the work
of Ossip Zadkine (1890-1967),'^ a French artist of Russian descent. Much of
Zadkine's work in this exhibi-
tion was Cubist in tone such as
Woman with Fan (1918; Fig. 2.1).
Photographs of some of Bikky 's
first sctdptures, now lost, show that
they are reminiscent of Zadkine's
work, although with more volume
and a rough or primitive quality.
Zadkine's artistic approach to wood
was similar to Bikky s. Zadkine's
biographer noted: "As an inspira-
tion, wood has yet another value to
Zadkine. It can be split. The split
form, the cleft, works on his imagi-
nation. A man who is chopping
also attacks; he opens up, he takes
away, he forces his way through.
He is striving to penetrate to the
heart of the matter, to discover the
human being in nature. This
kind of intense physical interaction
with his materials became the core
of Bikky 's later artistic activity.
Fig. 2.1: Zadkine s Woiiudi with Fan).
20
Another artist who possibly
influenced Bikky was pioneering
Japanese abstract sculptor Shigeru
Ueki (1913-1984), who founded
the Modern Art Association with
his friends in 1950 and joined in
the founding of the Japan Abstract
Art Club in 1953.'' Ueki worked
intensively with wood throughout
his career. He searched for simplified
and organic forms to deal with the
nature of wood, creating a series of
abstract torso forms as he pursued the
transcendental biomorphic form of
sculpture (Fig. 2.2). While no refer-
ences about Ueki by Bikky have been
found, Ueki was from Hokkaido and
there is no doubt that Bikky knew of
Ueki's work. The world of Japanese
abstract art was too small at the time
that the practitioners would not have
known of each other.
Bikky 's next known sculpture,
entitled No-fn (A Farmer), was sub-
mitted to the seventh MAAE in
1957. Perhaps he was facing the past
and through his art exploring the
dream of working with his father tilling the soil. This was one of the first works
he signed as "Bikki," using the Japanese phonetic spelling, which also indicates
this is an early work. In 1958 Bikky received the annual new talent award in the
sculpture division of the eighth MAAE, his first award in a major sculpture com-
petition. He also submitted a large-scale work, Dobiitsu 6 Hokaku sareta Dobntsu
(Animal 6: Captured Animal; Fig. 2.3), to the Shiidan Gendai Chokoku-ten (the
Avant-garde Sculptors' Group Contemporary Exhibition) in 1960. This sculptors'
group was founded by such leading artists as Taro Okamoto (191 1-1996) and was
Fie. 2.2: Uck
21
independent of established academies and traditions in Japan. Bikky and thirty-
seven other free-thinking artists were featured in the first exhibition at the Seibu
Department Store in Tokyo. This was a significant event to be a part of at that
time, and it received a great deal of attention from both the press and the public.
Animal 6: Captured Animal is one of Bikky s earliest sculptures to have
survived and is in the collections of the Hokkaido Museum of Art. Its biomorphic
form reminds the viewer of a flayed animal, more specifically of the skinned bear
in the iyomaute, the Ainu spirit-sending ceremony, which Bikky often witnessed
during his youth. Another clue that this work is strongly linked to Bikkys Ainu
heritage is that he has incised it with an itokpa, the Ainu patrilineal ancestral sign;
this may be the first large sculpture directly related to Bikky's cultural background.
Fig. 2.3: Diihiirui 6 Hokakii uircta Doluitsii (Anim.il 6: Captured Animal), 1960.
Around 1957 Bikky leh the Tokyo area and moved to Asahikawa City,
near his birthplace of Chikabumi. Although Bikky and Mineko had only just
married and soon had a son in April 1957, their relationship was in serious
trouble, and a divorce soon followed. Women found Bikkys charisma irresistable,
and Bikky had a most difficult time controlling that primal urge, which created
relationship problems throughout most of his life. Wanting to start a new life in
Hokkaido, he married Junko Takagi in 1961.
Bikky enjoyed associating with his old Ainu friends; for example, two of
his friends, his younger brother, and he appeared on TV for fun. They organized
22
a band for an amateur singing program on a Sapporo TV station and sang a song
with Ainu words to the melody of "You Are My Stmshine.''"''^ However, not every-
thing was fun and games: he devoted a great deal of time to designing an Ainu
craft center in Chikabumi. The purpose for this center was to provide a place for
Ainu people of the district to produce Ainu art and to learn the wider aspects of
carving, supervised by accomplished wood carvers, so that they might produce
quality work. He had strong beliefs about Ainu art in contemporary times:
I don't like bear carvings because they are not the real Ainu work
of Hokkaido. The essence of Ainu art shoidd be an expression of the
life of living things or an expression of a certain pathos which is
received froin living things while dealing with the medium of wood.
The Ainu carver should then revive these elements to the modern
times.
This statement not only sets the tone of his early series theme, Animal, but
was the basis of his spirituality. The craft center became a reality and was becom-
ing successful, until the building was destroyed to make room for a new street.
The center was not rebuilt.
The "Animal" Series (1961-1964)
While in Asahikawa Bikky began work on the
first of his 'Animal" sculptural series. Already a theme
that he had been exploring, these biomorphic forms
suggest the mystery of life, growth, and metamorpho-
sis, and explore Bikky's connection to Ainu
spirituality and animism, as well as close
connection to Zakine and Ueki's styles.
Bikky made a brief statement about
the "Animal" theme in later life: "When
expressing what is universal in animals,
you discover the essence of what it means
to be human. "^" Bikky wanted to express
the mystery of life by going back to the
ultimate origin of all living things. He
Sidebar 5
Ainu Fabric Art
For millennia Ainu women designed and
sewed textiles that had to withstand
Hokkaido's harsh climate. They made
these sturdy garments using natural
materials such as animal fur, fish skin, bird
feathers and bark and grass; and later
processed cotton cloth and silk acquired
in trade with the Japanese and Chinese.
Fig. 2.5.1:
1800.
'dinting of Woman Teaching Patterns to Girls,
Contiiiiics on jnv^c 24
23
Ainu Fabric Art continued
Ainu women designed and created
garments that were beautiful as well as
functional, often embroidered and appli-
qued with traditional abstract patterns.'
Sewing was a very important role for Ainu
women as a means not only of being
highly appreciated as a wife and mother
but also as a fabric artist. Sewing needles
were perhaps an Ainu woman's most
important possession, and she kept them
in a small, ornately decorated wooden or
bone tube worn around the neck.
Ainu women spent a great deal of time
sewing and creating their own original
designs. While they were sewing they
visualized the person who would wear
the garment and chose the materials and
designs they thought most suitable to the
wearer. Generally, a woman put the most
effort into the designs for her husband's
garments.' Highly decorated garments
were used for special ceremonies such as
the iyomante (bear-sending ceremony,
see sidebar 3). The special garments not
only pleased the spirits but were thought
to protect the person wearing them.
Garments were never used just to protect
the Ainu from the elements — there was
always a spiritual element to them, not to
mention a sense of fashion trends that
differed regionally.
Patterns embroidered or appliqued on
garments were passed down from mother
to daughter — Ainu girls did not receive
Figure 2.4: Aiiiiiial 5, 1962.
Fig. 2.5.2: g.irmciu with .Anui designs.
Continues on /'K^'t' 26
believed human beings
share some character-
istics with all living
things, being formed
and reproduced as part
of the circle of nature
since the beginning
of time.
Bikky submitted
the work Animal B
(Fig. 2.4) to the twelfth
MAAE in 1962. The
biomorphic shape of the
sculpture was a strong
implication of growth, giving the piece the feeling of an
amoeba or a bacterium. On the strength of this piece,
he was accepted as a member of the National Modern
Art Association, another milestone.''
In 1962 Bikky held two one-man exhibitions in
Tokyo galleries and became a member of the Hokkaido
Artists' Exhibition of MAA. Because of this acceptance,
officials at the Tokyo City Museum began to call him
sensei (teacher or master).^' Although any other
artist would have been pleased at acceptance by the
Japanese art establishment, Bikky believed that the
museum officials' attitude was hypocritical, and
refused to acknowledge the recognition, fie had
no advanced education of any kind and had been
shunned by the museum before he became a member.
At the end of the year he submitted Animal-
Ushi (Animal-Cow; Fig. 2.5) to the third Avant-
garde Sculptors' Group Contemporary Sculpture
Exhibition. His style had taken a new and important
change of direction although he was still pursuing
the location of the 'Animal" theme. While the work
24
is unknown, photographs show the piece as a tall column with a
rugged surface. The art critic Miki^^ wrote:
Bikky Sunazawa has submitted a "totem pole"-like
work, Animal-Cow, in which he has sticcessfiilly hinted at
the figure of an animal. The texture of the upper and lower
pieces differs. It's not clear how he meant to balance them,
but he did effectively contrast the smoother upper piece with
the spiny texture of the base.^^
Several other critics also noted that the work resembled a
totem pole, comments that possibly spurred Bikky's later interest in
the art of Canada's Northwest Coast Indians.
Bikky continued to create upright columnar pieces. Animal
Me (B) (Animal Eye; Fig. 2.6) is carved with undulating ridges and
whirlpool designs that suggest
complex Ainu textile designs.
The paired eyelike shape, a design
which appears frequently in
Ainu work (Fig. 2.7), is usually
called kamuy chik, the god s eye,
intended to ward off evil. Bikky
undoubtedly intended to incor-
porate the power and mysticism
of the eye into his sculpture,
evoking an interaction between
the audience and the sculpture.
Fig. 2.5: Aniiiial-Ushi
(Animal-Cow), 1962.
Fig. 2.7; KdDuiy-chik.
Fig. 2.6: Aininal hie (Aiiim.il Eye), 1963.
25
Ainu Fabric Art continued
formal instruction but learned the basics
of design and then created their own
patterns. Each new garment had a differ-
ent pattern that the woman developed
without sketching beforehand as she
sewed the garment. It was an important
expectation that every design be different
than the last.
Patterns were not representational even
though some may appear to be symbolic
of natural elements such as wind, rain,
or snow. Ainu women never incorpo-
rated design elements from nature, or
wild animals into garments because they
believed that the animals' spirit would be
trapped in the design and cause harm.
There are, however, some very rare picto-
rial examples of butterflies, birds, and
flowers that may have been influenced by
Japanese kimonos. Decorative patterns,
made from contrasting colors, graced the
front, back, sleeve, and hem borders, and
were intended to keep evil spirits from
entering the body — much as Ainu moth-
ers would place rope around a baby while
working outside to keep spirits away.
Patterns may also have echoed the curv-
ing designs that women tattooed on the
back of their hands, around their arms.
At the end of 1963 Bikky joined the
Andepandan Exhibition in Hokkaido and submitted
the last of his 'Animal" themed works and a new work
totally different than anything in the past, Tentakuru
(meikyn) [Tentacle (maze)]. Unfortunately, the where-
abouts of these works is not known. The title Tentacle
presages Bikkys next theme, as he stated:
I developed the theme of "Animal" for eight
years. I wanted to dip deep to expose the true nature
of 'Animal" which includes the human animal. I have
taken the Animal theme as far as I can, and I am satis-
fied with the results. I have decided to pursue a new
theme "Meikyu" (maze), which can be described as an
extension of "Animal," but much deeper.
The human animal is capable of think-
ing and I want to explore the human process
through my art. When you look at a human
brain, it looks like a maze ( tentacle). However,
I also want to explore the mystery of the maze
from a metaphysical perspective" ■ ^
In 1964 he ended the 'Animal" theme after he had his third exhibition
in Tokyo. During this period he also ended his membership of MAA, as he
explained:
/ was one of the judges in the MAA competition, ivhich awarded
prizes to applicants based on a show of hands ivithout discussion. A
young person like me, and a new member like me, should not judge
whether other artists' works are good or bad.
Bikky was completely a self-taught, self-educated artist, which was
extremely unusual at that time. Even though some self-taught artists in the fifties
emerged from the fringe of the established Japanese art field, they usually worked
in the artistic expressions of Dadaism or the Anti-Art {Han-geijutsu) movement.
In many respects Bikky was a very raw talent, with the exception of the work of
26
Zadkine and probably Ueki, Bikky isn't known to have
been influenced by any particular school or style of art,
and his artistic training was only based on Ainu tradi-
tional carving, which carried no respect. In contrast, the
majority of Japanese artists were from privileged families
and trained at formal art schools or they were trained
in the ancient master-disciple system. By only acknowl-
edging or evaluating young artists by their academic
background or family ties the conservative hardliners
controlled who entered the all-important art circle.
Bikky wasn't happy about these political relationships
in the Modern Art Association. He made up his mind
to concentrate on one-man shows from then on. It was
time for him to move on to the next stage of his artistic
activity.
End Notes
1. Letter to Katstimi Yazaki, 1981, in K. Yazaki's private collection.
Bikky's statement about having a "common opinion" with Shibuzawa
concerning eroticism in art may mislead the reader. Shibtizawa's
involvement with sexuality seems to be as a passive viewer and critic,
while Bikky on the other hand, was an active participant, a partner in
the sensual act of creating art.
2. Miki (1990:112).
3. An exhibition of independent artists organized by the participants
as opposed to kanten or exhibitions held by the government. "This
type ot exhibition was developed in France. It is similar to zaiya-ten
(nongovernmental exhibitions), but it is different from zaiya-ten in
the sense that andepandan-ten has the aspect of mukansa (not having
the work submitted to a selecting committee) and prizes are not given.
The Nihon Andepandan-ten and Kyoto Andepandan-ten were two of
the more popular exhibits in Japan" [A Dictionary of Japanese Art Terms
1990:20).
4. Munroe (1994:149-50; 398).
5. Fujishima (1990b: 162-4).
6. Miki (1990:121-4). Isamu Noguchi (1904-1988), was a U.S. sculp-
tor of Japanese descent. He was born and raised in America. "He
studied with Gutzon Borglum (the carver of Mount Rushmore) and
Constantin Brancusi whose assistant he became in 1927. He was also
influenced by Alexander Calder, Alberto Giacometti, Joan Miro, and
Pablo Picasso in his Surrealist phase. In the 1930s Noguchi was, with
Calder, one of the most advanced sculptors working in the United
States" (Read 1985:241).
Ainu Fabric Art continued
and on their faces to protect them from
evil spirits — and serve as signs of maturity
and respectability.'
That Peramonkoro (1897-1971), Bikky's
mother, taught him to create designs and
work on fabrics shows her independent
spirit; it also provided him with a reservoir
of imagery on which to draw from in his
work. Even though she passed away over
thirty years ago, she continues to be a
role model today, inspiring contemporary
artists such as Noriko Kawamura who is
creating incredible complex fine textile
art, bringing traditional abstract art to the
next level in large wall treatments. •*
Fig. 2.5.3: women's tattoos.
Sidebar Notes
1. Dubreuil (2002)
2. M. Kodama (1987:83).
3. Dubreuil (1999a, 2002)
4. Dubreuil ( I ')')')b, 2003)
27
7. Miki (1990:120-1).
8. Interview with Mineko Kano, April 23, 1994.
9. Bikky mux many forward-thinking intellectuals at the home of Kazuo and Mitsuko Arita. Kazuo Arita was
a successful architect and a patron of the arts, and he and his wife would feed the struggling young intel-
lectuals and participate in lively discussions about life and art. The Aritas became Bikky's confidants, help-
ing him as he desperately tried to overcome the prejudice he had experienced due to his Ainu heritage.
Bikky's relationship with the Aritas lasted throughout his life, and they were in close contact with each
other. Kazuo Arita spoke at the second annual Talk-about-Trees Exhibition, and their son, Yasugi, became
one of Bikky's assistants from 1980-1982.
10. Munroe (1994:189).
1 1. For many years Shibuzawa would send Bikky copies of his published work in magazines, and autographed
copies of his books. Bikky had a great deal of respect for Shibuzawa (interview Junko Takagi, May 13,
1995).
12. Other members of the salon inckided Shuntaro Matsuyama (b. 1930), a scholar on the Indian subcon-
tinent; Shuzo Takiguchi (1903-1979), poet, art critic, and painter; Ikuya Kato (b. 1929), poet; Yuri
Nonaka (b. 1938), painter; and several others.
13. Interview with Micsuko Arita, May 14, 1995.
14. See note no 1 .
15. Interview with Mineko Kano, April 23, 1994.
16. Yamakawa (1988:188).
17. Echizen (1994b:84).
18. Yamakawa (1988:186-7).
19. Interview with Mineko Kano April 23, 1994.
20. Bikky's brother, Kazuo Sunazawa, himself a carver and an illustrator of ttaditional Ainu scenes, now
owns and operates the gift shop. The name of the shop is "SUNAZAWA AINU CRAFTWORK, KOA-
KANNO - BIKKY, " an unselfish statement of love and respect for his father and his brother.
21. Bikky never gave up painting and elrawing. In fact, while there were no records kept, he sold far more
paintings and drawings than sculptures. Over the years he made many hundreds if not thousands of
paintings, and the sale of his paintings paid not only household expenses, but they financed his carving
activities. One collector, Shinobu Ishijima, has more than five hundred paintings and drawings, and forty
sculptures (interview with S. Ishijima, July 29, 1995).
22. Yamakawa (1988:187).
23. Ossip Zadkine (1890-1967) was a sculptor born in Smolensk. He studied in Sunderland, London, and in
1909 at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts, Paris. "In Paris he formed a deep admiration for Rodin, but the most
immediate impact upon him was that of Cubism. For a few years he experimented — like Lipchitz, Laurens
and Archipenko — with a disciplined analysis of the figure into an austere geometric arrangement of solids.
In the 1920s his forms took on an essentially expressive significance, e.g. Prometheus, a fusion of figure
and flame, and the torso of Orpheus {\949) and T/u- Destroyed G>y ( 1 95 1-3)." (Read 1985:349).
24. Hammacher 1 959:introduction.
25. Shigeru Ueki (1913-1984) was born in Sapporo, Flokkaido. He learned avant-garde art such as Cubism
and Dadaism b\' himself He studied painting with Kotaro Migishi (1903-1934), but when he made a
trip to Nara, and saw Cbiken-iu of Dainichi-nyorai in Tosho-daiji, he was moved by it and he began study-
ing sculptute by himself He submitted many of his works in various exhibitions including the Sao Paulo
Biennalo and Venice Biennale. He was known as a pioneer abstract sculptor (The catalogue, Hito to Kaze
to Kamigai 1993:20).
26. Bikky had met and conversed with Okamoto on at least one occasion, and while Bikky had great respect
for Okamoto, he had no interest in his art (interview with Junko Takagi, May 14, 1995).
27. Miki (1990:121). Exhibitions ol all types, including very important art exhibitions, are regularly held in
large department stores throughout Japan. There is almost always dedicated exhibition space in depart-
ment stores. Attendance at department store e.xhibitions is nearly always extremely high.
28. Sugimura (1990).
l^.AsahiShimbwu (November 22 1960).
30. Asahi Shmibim (August 28, 1988).
31. Echizen (1994b:85).
32. Yamakawa (1988:187).
33. Tamon Miki (b. 1929) was a director ot the National Museum of International Art and an established art
critic ol modern sculptural field.
34. Miki (1963:70-1).
35. Hokkai Times (January 30, 1980).
36. Yamakawa (1988:187).
Frontispiece: Bikky being interviewed by a newspaper reporter in April 1974
Chapter 3
The Back of the Mask; Art and Activism in Sapporo
(1964-1978)
It is said that a devil is "an asking person" and "a stranger. "
A mask is "a stranger" who doesn't have characteristic
features or specific appearances. It ahvays asks ns if we know
who it is. Make the mask turn around. The content of the
mask is empty. It is filled with emptiness. How can the
characteristic human face endure such a complete emptiness?^
If Bikky's years in Tokyo had been a time for him
socially, and intellectually, the next decade and a half was
he believed, wasted energy. During this period, however,
Bikky gained a deeper understanding of his Ainu identi-
ty and connected it to themes that would thread through
his artwork for the rest of his life.
Bikky had moved his family from Tokyo to
Asahikawa City in Hokkaido around 1960 and shuttled
them back and forth between Asahikawa and Sapporo
several times before relocating there in 1964. He would
live in the prefectural capital for the next fourteen years.
Although his work was being shown in one-man shows
in galleries in Tokyo and Sapporo and gaining increas-
ing critical recognition, he could not make a living
from selling his fine art pieces. He turned instead to the
modestly lucrative but unfulfilling task of creating Ainu
tourist art and selling the pieces through the Kitmiihoii
to grow artistically,
a time of frustration and,
Sidebar 6
Ainu Art and The Japanese Art
Establishment
The attitude reflected in the traditional
Japanese art field for Ainu art has typically
been one of disdain. Many Japanese art
critics have stereotyped all Ainu art as tour-
ist art while others have categorized Ainu
art as merely being ethnographic artifacts.
One of the reasons for this attitude is that
Japanese art historians have applied the
canonical criteria established in the Western
hierarchical classification system since the
Meiji Restoration in 1868. Following this
evaluation system, Ainu art is regarded
in the category of "low" craft or applied
art with the bulk of the pieces created by
"anonymous" artists. The contrasting termi-
nology "art" versus "craft" draws dichoto-
mous boundaries between "high Japanese
art" over "low Ainu craft."
The earliest substantial contribution to
the study of Ainu art came in the work of
Ciilllilllk's oil pnxi- i2
31
Ainu Art and The Japanese Art
Establishment continued
Sugiyama Sueo (1885-1946), an industrial
designer and an owner of a design com-
pany, who authored and published Ainu
no Mon'yo (Ainu Design Motifs) in 1926.'
This book was the first Japanese effort to
examine and analyze Ainu material culture
as art work. In the 1940s Sugiyama and
the Japanese scholar of the Ainu, Kindaichi
Kyosuke (1882-1971) compiled all avail-
able research into three volumes, Ainu no
Ceijutsu (Ainu Art). The first volume was a
survey of Ainu textiles published in 1941:
the second was on woodcarvings (1942);
and the third was on metal work and
lacquerware (1943). These books contain
many illustrations along with extensive
information and initiated a new interest in
Ainu art among academics.
Since then, little has been published in
either japan or the West on Ainu art,
especially Ainu contemporary art. Modern
artists have not been recognized or criti-
cally appraised; without important cri-
tiques by art critics, art historians, and the
viewing public, recognition of traditional
and contemporary Ainu creative efforts
as art remains problematic.^ However,
in recent years some Ainu contemporary
artists have begun to publish art books
of their own work as a statement of their
artistic identity. Examples include works
by Nuburi Toko (1995), Mutsumi Chiri
and Takao Yokoyama (1995), and Sanae
Ogawa and Machiko Kato (1996).
Mingei-sha (the Kitanihon Folkcraft Company), which
filled much of his timer His ability to produce his large-
scale work was also affected by suffering through several
years of devastating vision and balance problems that
prevented him from producing any artwork — problems
brought on by a head injury he suffered while drink-
ing. His constant drinking and womanizing disrupted
his relationship with his second wife and their children,
who were raised, essentially fatherless, in Asahikawa.
"Tentacle (a maze)"
Beginning in 1964, when Bikky first moved to
Sapporo, he began to pursue the first of the sculptural
themes that had evolved from the "Animal" series. In
his "Tentacle (a maze)" series he created mysterious
forms that invited viewers to handle them. Tentacle-like
projections appear in some of Bikky s earliest known
drawings (see Fig. 1.4) and primordial biological struc-
tures fascinated Bikky. However, the biomorphic forms
of the sculptures did not look like "any of a variety of
long, slender, flexible growths, as about the head or
mouth of some invertebrate animals" as defined by
Webster's dictionary; they did, however, invoke the
action ol those protrusions, recalling the way an octopus
or squid touches and almost seems to fondle its food.
He intentionally put the word "maze" in parentheses to
evoke the audience's journey through an exhibition of his work.
Bikky believed that sculpture demanded to be touched. The tactile sense
and the action of touching created a different way of seeing sculpture.
He explained:
People should appreciate sculptures by touching them, but there
is always an ironclad rule not to touch sculptures in exhibitions.
Although the sense of sight is central to modern times, I wondered if I
could grasp the deeper root meaning of human beings from the other
Sidebar Notes
1. Sugiy.um (1926, 1934, 1940)
2. Dubreuil (1999b, 2003).
32
degenerated tactile senses. This is hoiv I developed the tentacle theme.
As I said, sculptures are not to be just seen but to be touched with the
hands. You get into a dark exhibition hall while touching the sculp-
tures with your hands and you eventually find your way out of the
roo?n — you've walked through a "maze"ofscidpture that you see your
way through with your hands. That thought led to my maze theme.^
Bikky would sometimes cover his work with black cloth and let the public
touch the sculpture with their hands under the cloth. ^ He also encouraged the
public not only to touch the work with their hands, but also to play with and
rearrange his work. For example, some of Bikky 's "Tentacle (a maze)" works are
formed from interlocking pieces carved out of a single piece of wood. Apart, each
piece might appear to represent simple biological
forms such as chromosomes or amoebas; together,
depending on how they are arranged and the angle
from which they are viewed, they appear to be men
and women embracing, animals wrestling, or raw ener-
gy twisting and writhing. Bikky wanted the movable
elements to stimulate the publics imagination and give
the viewers new experiences or relationships with the
sculptures. He wanted to convey through touching the
wood the Ainu belief that all things in nature, animate
or inanimate, have a kinship with humans. He also
wanted to stimulate senses more often used by animals
than humans:
"The more you focus on the tactile sense as
a theme, the more endless the concept becomes. It
eventually becomes visual. Although the struggle is
continuous, the point of view from the tactile sense is
always there.
One of the Tentacle works that still exists
was submitted to the Artists Union Exhibition at
the Tokyo City Museum in 1976 (Fig. 3.1). The
large piece is composed of several movable sculptural
forms connected with wooden pegs, allowing it to be
Fig. 3.1: Surviving Teiilihlc piece.
33
folded, bent, and stretched to create many variations. For instance, if it is folded
in half or in thirds, it appears to be a person hugging him or herself or two people
embracing. When folded into a very tight, firm, and stable position, there is a
feeling of fluid motion. When it is unfolded, it turns into an unstable and fragile
piece, devoid of life. Viewers were invited to play with it and create their own
forms and images.
Unforttmately, only a few of the "Tentacle (a maze)" works still exist. To
Bikky, the process of creating his sculptures was almost more important than the
end product. Bikky did not care greatly what happened to his sculptures once
he had finished the process of creating them — for example, many of the 1970s
"Tentacle (a maze)" works were stolen from an open truck after a major exhibition
while he went drinking with friends.
His emphasis on the process of artistic creation was no doubt because he
had a sensual relationship with the wood he was carving. He likened it to his rela-
tionship to the many women in his life. In a letter to a friend he wrote, "The finer
the quality of wood becomes, the more like a woman it becomes. I know it's a
terrible thing to say, but I enjoy how the wood changes when I have, what amounts
to, an intimate (sensual) relationship with the wood. My new studio will be the
place to make love to the wood."''
Bikky's Tourist Art
In 1967, to support his wife Junko and their three small children, Bikky
began working under an exclusive contract with the Kitanihon Mingei-sha (the
Kitanihon Folkcraft Company). In Hokkaido Bikky was well known for his
extremely innovative wooden jewelry incised with modernized Ainu designs, the
so-called "Bikky patterns" {Bikky inon'yo). Even though the company hired him for
his "star quality" and didnt expect a great deal of work from him, Bikky produced
an unbelievable amount of tourist art, mostly jewelry, during this period. He was
extremely prolific, even when drinking.
In the summer of 1967 Bikky made his own workshop in an enclosed
space in the company's warehouse. In this tiny workshop he made a bed from an
old horse sleigh and brought in his books and tools. One of his friends described
Bikky's routine at that time:
when I visited his studio, it was like a rag-and-hone shop. Bikky
often dozed in a closet or in the chair in the daytime. He usually ivent
to Susukino [the nightlife district in Sapporo] to drink. His creation of
art was done f om midnight till the morning light after drinking.^
Even with his many distractions, he produced rings, necklaces, earrings,
never using the same design twice. Bikky's jewehy sold extremely well even though
it was priced up to ten times more than other artists' work. He also produced
large numbers of carved wooden insects, reptiles,
and fish using a relief technique (Fig. 3.2). These
charming pieces have articulated segments such
as wings, tails, heads, and joints, all pegged with
wooden nails and carved with intricate Ainu
designs using the makiri, the traditional Ainu
carving tool.
Tetsuji Takeishi, the Kitanihon Folkcraft
Company's managing director, said that by using
the makiri, Bikky couldn't carve the precise circles
possible with a modern chisel and that his circles
were usually irregular. Bikky did not try to create
exact circles, but he certainly had the technical
skill required to do so. When he created abstract
art, he still carved in the traditional Ainu man-
ner. The result is somewhat irregular, capturing
the distinctive rhythm that no one could copy.
Bikky also created the unique algae color that
coated the recessed surface of the designs, adding
depth and emphasizing the relief designs. The
color, looking very much like the green of old
copper, was achieved through a mixture of pig-
ments and oil stains.
Bikky also created several statues depict-
ing traditional Ainu elders, although in the
beginning he didn't particularly like creating
these stereotyped images." He also carved an
Fig. 3.2: Cirveii insects.
exquisite scene of confrontation between an Ainu elder and a bear from a tree
stump (Fig. 3.3). The sculpture creates a moment of deep tension showing the life
and death struggle of a hunter and his prey. The bears hind leg is raised in space,
which suggests a moment frozen in time, depicting action and pain. The sense of
spontaneity, the capturing
of the awesome moment of
death, makes us voyeurs of
this powerful scene.
Bikky was good at
using any piece of wood
that found its way to his
hands and believed that
fate brought wood to him
to be revived by his hands.
His first deliberate experi-
mentation at a totem pole
as a concept resulted from
a piece that had fallen from
a dump truck, an object
that would start him on a
trip that would ultimately
change his life. The idea
of using the totem-pole
format was probably planted in his subconscious by the art critic Miki, who
had used that term to describe an early work by Bikky years before. However,
Kenichi Kawamura, ctdtural leader of the Asahikawa band of Ainu and a family
friend, stated that Bikky was also influenced by images he had seen in National
Geographic.'^
That first totem experiment, carved in 1972 (Fig. 3.4), was two meters
high. The pole depicts an Ainu elder, an owl, a pair of birds, and a bear. To those
familiar with the art of Canada's Northwest Coast Indians the work does not
look like a totem pole, but to the Ainu and Japanese, who had little knowledge of
totem poles, it did.
Although Bikky was proud of the quality of his work for the Kitanihon
Folkcraft Company, his eyesight was starting to fail, hampering his ability to do
Fig. 3.3: Bear and Hunter (Ekishi), 1973.
36
the fine, close-up work that he relied on for a
steady livelihood.'" For this and a variety of other
reasons, he created very little fine art between
1967 and 1974. He found the work physically
difficult; even though he was only in his fiDrties.
His difficulty with relationships was taking its
toll with his second marriage disintegrating.
Always a heavy drinker, he was now drinking to
an excess on a regular basis, with drink becoming
both the cause, and the effect, of his marital prob-
lems. As an additional distraction, he became
embroiled in Ainu political causes, just as his
parents had done many years before."
Bikky's Activism
During the 1970s the Ainu demand
for equality and justice exploded, championed
by the Ainu Liberation League and sympa-
thetic Japanese. The movement coalesced in
1970 around a bronze
Fig. 3.4: Totem Pole.
montiment, designed
by Japanese sculptor
Shin Hongo, which
was to be erected in
Asahikawas Joban Park
as a monument to the
centennial of Japanese
settlement in Hokkaido. The Japanese pioneering spirit
was symbolized by four standing men identified with the
titles of The Surge (as a wave coming ashore). The Earth,
A Fertile Plain, and The North Wind, while the aborigi-
nal Ainu was illustrated by an elderly Ainu man entitled
The Kotan (Ainu village). The man knelt at the feet ot
the Japanese pioneers, pointing to guide their way. The
Sidebar 7
The Bear in Ainu Tourist Art
Almost all curio shops in Hokkaido sell
bear carvings, exotic souvenirs of the
"vanishing" Ainu race. The iyomante
(bear spirit-sending ceremony) is known
to many |apanese through magazines,
books, and even a song called Iyomante
no Yoru (Night of the Iyomante) popular
in the 1940s and 1950s that conjure a
romanticized image of the Ainu as noble
savages.
Traditionally, the Ainu never carved natu-
ralistic images of humans and animals,
( (IHtimU's III! /'i/'s'l'
37
Fig. 3.5: 1 he Sutuc of Fiisetsu iio Guiizo (Wind and Snow Group) hy Shin 1 iongo, U)70 ( 1977).
implication was clear: the Japanese were the hiture of Hokkaido, not the Ainu
(Fig. 3.5). This insensitivity enraged the Ainu community, and the artist's vague
and arrogant response created further hostility, as did his design change to show
the Ainu elder sitting on a stump, suggesting to the Ainu that they would always
look up to the Japanese.
When the statue was unveiled in the park, Bikky distributed protest hand-
bills in downtown Asahikawa:
Why did the Ainu have to sit down in the kotan! Can't (the artist)
make a composition in which all the figures are the same height? . . .
The Japanese images were illustrated as The Surge, The Earth,
A Fertile Plain, and The North Wind. What a triumphant and
boundless space these images create! Compare them with the image
of the Ainu, the title of the Kotan sounds so restricted. Why did we,
the Ainu, have to sit down and stay in the kotan! Hokkaido used to
belong to us, didn't it?
It is o.k. to celebrate the centennial, but the
Japanese aren't the only people who struggled.
We, the Ainu, struggled, too, and these past one
hundred years were the time of our humiliation.
However, we try to get rid of the huyniliation, and
the Ainu are also standing pointing at the modern
consciousness.
Can we, the Ainu, proudly take a memorial
picture in front of this statue? No!
As long as the Ainu have to sit down and stay
in the kotan, this monument cant rid us of the
abominable way the Japanese have treated the
Ainu. The artist and the leaders of the city should
understand this, signed Bikky Sunazawa.^'
In October 1972 the statue was destroyed
by explosives. An Ainu ethnological display on the
University of Hokkaido campus was also blown up at the
same time. Because of Bikky s political activity, the police
immediately suspected him and unsuccessfully attempted
to gather evidence against him. Between 1972 to 1974,
many violent demonstrations were carried out in the
name of Ainu liberation including the bombing of the
world headquarters of both the Mitsui and Mitsubishi
Companies in Tokyo and the stabbing of the mayor of
Shiraoi, home of the biggest Ainu museum and tourist
attractions in Hokkaido. However, many of these
incidents were later proved to be done by Japanese
liberation groups such as the Japanese Red Army
Faction, without the political support of the Ainu.'^
Generally, Bikky didn't like belonging to any
organized group, nor to be associated with them.
He was especially critical of the Hokkido Utari
Association." He believed that some Ainu belonged to
the Association simply to get benefits without trying
The Bear in Ainu Tourist Art
continued
believing that the images could be
possessed by bad gods and harm people.
They did, however, carve stylized kimun-
kamuy, the bear god of the mountains, on
prayer sticks, ceremonial headdresses, and
sacred items used for ritual purposes such
as the bear inoka, used by the Sakhalin
Ainu for the purpose of promoting fecun-
dity of bears needed for the iyomante.^
The Ainu began carving bears for sale
in the early 1900s.^ It must have been
difficult for the Ainu to carve such a
sacred object for profit for the Japanese,
but the Ainu realized they had to adapt
to changing times. While many Ainu had
carved the bear in miniature as part of the
ikupasuy (prayer sticks, see Sidebar 3) and
still more had carved a bear head as part
of their headdress, no one had carved
a full bear's body in a larger scale or in
a realistic pose. This proved a problem
at first. The earliest bears were far from
being a faithful representation of the
animal — one scholar noted that they often
looked like pigs or alligators!^
The bear-carving skills of the Ainu
progressed rapidly, however, and by the
early 1920s Umetaro Matsui (1901-1949)
(Fig. 3.7.2), from the Chikabumi kotan,
(Ainu settlement) emerged as a celebrated
bear carver. Matsui's bears capture the
animal's awesome power and showed
it as a formidable foe in the wild; it's
obvious that he observed bears in nature.
Fig. 3.7.2: Photo of Umetaro Mncsui.
Coiiliiiiic\ (III -4 1
39
to understand their policies. He was
very troubled that some Ainu were
so secure in the Association that they
were stuck in a narrow world view
of victims of discrimination, and
he believed that some Ainu would
never leave the kotan mentally. He
could not stand that they were will-
ing to just live in the past. He truly
believed if you have something to
say, you should say it independently
without the support from a political
organization.'^
Although Bikky generally
preferred independent action to
belonging to organizations, he was
persuaded to stand as chairman to
the January 1 973 National Ainu
Conference held in Sapporo. He
also participated in the 44th Pan-
Hokkaido United Labor Day Rally
in May. "I Ve never participated in
this kind of organized racial rally
before," Bikky told a reporter. "As
our racial consciousness grows, I want to appeal to the Ainu to gain awareness
of our situation and be proud ot being Ainu. Marchers prepared placards that
focused on the major issues of the Ainu such as "Let the last unspoiled wilder-
ness (Mount Daisetsu) be in our hands," and "Represent true Ainu history in
school textbooks." They also hoisted the "Ainu flag" designed by Bikky with a red
arrowhead accentuated by a white design symbolizing the deep snow of Hokkaido,
against the intense blue of the sky. An arrowhead embodies the spirit of the
iyoniajite, the bear ceremony. Bikky walked with the flag at the head of the
procession (Fig. 3.6).
In June 1973 a monthly ne^ws'pzper A-ntari Ainu (We human beings)
was published for the first time. Edited by younger Ainu activists, the journal
Fig. 3.6: Ainu Flag, 1973.
40
reexamined Ainu cultural identit)^. Bikky designed a logo
and carved woodcut illustrations. Unfortunately, the
newspaper ceased publication in 1976.
While he was gaining public trust and admira-
tion, Bikkys private life was in turmoil. He didn't engage
in any public artistic activities — except for one Tentacle
exhibition in 1973 in Tokyo — during the period he was
working in the Kitanihon Folkcraft Company to make
a living. He was frustrated with his situation as an art-
ist. He wanted to be a successful modern sculptor, but
he couldn't sell his larger abstract work, especially in
Sapporo. To make matters worse, because of his finan-
cial difficulties, he couldn't afford to buy high-quality
wood and had no room in his workshop for large-scale
work. He often complained to his wife Junko that if
he couldn't create modern sculptures, he didn't feel like
he was being true to himself Moreover, it caused the
estrangement between
him and his family to
worsen day by day. Bikky
was depressed, drinking
heavily, and womanizing
compulsively.
The Bear in Ainu Tourist Art
continued
In 1933 Matsui received a special award
at the Ainu Craftwork Art Exhibition spon-
sored by the Hokkaido Prefectural Office.
This honor was surpassed in 1936 when
he was asked to carve a bear for presenta-
tion to Emperor Hirohito who was making
an official visit to Asahikawa. Due to the
Emperor's acceptance of the gift, the bear
carvings of the Chikabumi Ainu became
famous in japan and greatly increased the
sales of all Ainu tourist art. Matsui began
putting his signature on his work from
this point on.'*
In the 1930s, a Japanese modern sculp-
tor, Kensei Kato (1894-1966), was invited
to Asahikawa several times to give the
Ainu carvers guidance and training. 5 This
gave the Ainu carvers a "formal" artistic
background that included design and
composition, and this experience seemed
to have a strong impact on the art of bear
carving. Because of his reputation as a
master carver, and because he was one
of the most important cultural leaders,
one of these trained carvers was probably
Bikky Sunazawa's father, Koa-kanno, who
lived in the Chikabumi kotan.
In 1937 the Hokkaido Industrial
Experimental Laboratory tried to create
a larger variety of designs worthy of
Cuiitiniws on pa^e 42
The "/^/-men" (Wooden Mask) Series
In 1975 Bikky finally worked through his
depression, stimulated by masks Takeji Takahashi
brought back from a business trip to Bangkok
and Singapore.'*^ Bikky began by carving masks
developed aroimd variations on the Japanese kanji
character ^/.''* Bikky named the theme Ki-men, in
which the character ki means "wood," and men
means "mask." Like his other series, Ki-men con-
tinued his exploration of visual and tactile elements
Fig. 3.7: Lip Mask.
41
The Bear in Ainu Tourist Art
continued
of human and animal bodies that he had pursued in
Anijjial and Tentacle (a maze).
Some masks appeared to be pictorial symbols,
while others look like wild imaginary creatures. Some
are very simple shapes, such as circles. Others have a
sensual quality, such as the mask in Fig. 3.7 that has
lip-like shapes carved down its entire surface, while
others appear to be human genitalia. These shapes sug-
gest intimacy and life, supporting Bikky's notion that
wood is a "living thing." Bikky explained in an inter-
view, "I wanted to express both faces of masks — the
front and the back."'" He worked both sides of the
masks with deep, rhythmic chisel marks, observing that
"I finally understood that the greater element of a mask
was the back side.""'
Ki-men was also influenced by the word play of
Bikky's abstract essays and poems. He played with the
visual forms of ki just as he played with words in his
poetry. The ki image was sometimes created using just
a hint of the characters shape or a fragment taken from
its meaning and developed into several specific images
first by sketching the abstract form. As with most of his
carvings, the object rarely changed significantly from
the final sketch.
Between 1975 and 1979 Bikky created as many as one hundred and fifty
masks, all using the pale wood of the walnut tree {Gastrolina thoracica), which is
native to Hokkaido. Bikky pursued the Ki-men series for the pure joy of a personal
creative challenge, part of his constant urge to experiment with his art.
Hokkaido's natural beauty. For instance,
they created various products with bear
motifs.'' It remains unclear how many of
the experimental products were actually
merchandised in the markets, but it con-
tributed a great deal to the tourist indus-
tries in Hokkaido in 1938 and to the for-
mation of the Ainu Folkcraft Organization
in the same year. World War II curtailed
the market for tourist art, but Asahikawa
City did not suffer any war damage.
Immediately after the war the Asahikawa
Folkcraft Organization began producing
woodcarvings to answer the market
demands from the American soldiers of
the Occupation Forces.-' The product line
now included practical items that were
produced for the Americans. Almost all
items were created with a design that had
something to do with bears, killer whales,
salmon, or with traditional Ainu designs.
Bikky, as a young Ainu artist who began
to work in this era, refused to follow these
trends and as he so often did, created his
own way, revolutionizing Ainu tourist art
as he did so.
Today Ainu carvers such as Takeki Fujito
(b. 1 934) create wildlife fine art of the
highest order. The work of Fujito, the
most respected and successful of the Ainu
wildlife artists, in found throughout the
world. While he creates all manner of
animals in the Ainu spiritual pantheon,
and other representational art such as life-
Kamuy-mintar (The Playground of the Gods)
In the summer of 1976 Bikky decided to escape from city life in Sapporo
and think about the course ol his life and his artwork. He was forty-five and real-
ized he needed time to decide what to do next. He camped in Ubun outside of
Asahikawa City, where he and his father struggled to farm after World War II. It
42
was also where he had awakened to the joys of the abstract
manner of sketching and confronted his own feehngs of
inferiority caused by racial prejudice. This three-month
period of isolation gave him a tremendous opportunity
to find himself Bikky pitched a tent, built a rock hearth,
and bathed in the river. He returned to Sapporo spiritu-
ally refreshed and ready to resume his work.
Almost immediately he received a commission
to create a work for the Komakusa-so, an indoor onsen
(hot springs) for the Hokkaido Prefecture City Staff
Mutual Aid Union. The commissioner, Tetsuo Endo, was
a former director of the Asahikawa Local Museum who
knew Bikky. Endo was having a hard time filling a large
wall space in the lobby of the omen and asked Bikky to
come and take a look at the space. Bikky did and tele-
phoned a couple days later, "If you find a large log of sen
{Caster aralia), I will do it.""'
The first thing Bikky did was to bring in an old
horse-drawn sleigh to be used as his bed and put it in
front of the space where the work would hang. Endo
described Bikky sitting in the sleigh, staring at the space
in the hall for a long time while drinking whiskey. If he
got tired he slept on the sleigh. He made many sketches,
and when he began carving, he would work for awhile
and then run his rough hands gently, sensitively over the
wood, his eyes becoming very emotional.
Bikky named the work Knmuy-mintar, the play-
ground of the gods, and it came to be one of Bikky s
favorite works. He would often return to the onsen to be
close to it."^ Bikky explained what the sculpture meant
to him:
Several years ago I came hack to Hokkaido because I realized
how strongly I was attracted to Hokkaido's wilderness. Mt. Daisetsu
looked like a father opening his hands wide to welcome the summer.
In winter the mountain showed its severe monochromatic colors. Our
The Bear in Ainu Tourist Art
continued
size statuary of Ainu elders, he considers
himself a simple "bear carver." Fujito,
the ultimate role model, challenges other
wildlife artists to move away from the
craft production of the stereotypical tour-
ist bear. As the Ainu culture experiences a
revitalization, the challenge is being met.s
Sidebar Notes
1. M. Kono (1985:15).
2. K. Sake (1979); Ohtsuka (1982);
Ishijima (1979, 1981).
Arai (1992:82); K. Saito (1979:4).
Ishijima (1981:11-12).
Kensei Kato was born in 1894
in Gifu prefecture, but his family
moved to Hokkaido after his birth.
He graduated from Kamikawa
Junior High School in Asahikawa
city. He worked as a substitute
teacher in the Ubun Elementary
School from 1913, while living in
the lodgings of a farm house near
the school. He devoted himself
to teaching, but was inspired by
the tutoring of sculptor Teijiro
Nakahara (1888-1921) and he
entered Art School in Tokyo in
1915. He studied under Koun
Takamura (1852-1934). He was
later selected to be one of the Nitten
judges. He received an Art Academy
Prize in 1951 and he became a
member of the Art Academy in
1962. He passed away in 1966 at
the age of 74 (K. Saito 1980:3).
6. Ohtsuka (1982:16).
7. Ibid.: 17; Ishijima (1980a:3-4)
8. Dubreuil (1999b, 2003).
43
Aiflu Utari [brotherhood] called it "a garden where the gods play" and
I was swallowed up in its magnificence.
I symbolized the flying butterflies over the floiver gardens ofMt.
Daisetsu in the upper portion of the scidpture. I also symbolized the
"autumn horse mackerels" [a fish] going upstream in the Ishikari River
that comes from Mt. Daisetsu in the lower portion of the scidpture.
Afier I finished it and looked at the building site again, I realized the
building was placed on a gorgeous site! '^
Kamuy-mintar (Fig. 3.8), which may be the first piece of work Bikky
named in the Ainu language, was a turning point for Bikky. In the past he hated
to be referred to as the "Ainu" modern sculptor. He didn't like to be treated
differently because of his being Ainu and avoided native themes or titles in his
work (with some notable exceptions), fie ciidnt like viewers to see his work with
Fig 3.8: Kamuy-»!i)!tiit\ 1977.
a fixed concept or an expectation of being something Ainu. His personal view of
art was that 'whether the artwork is good or not has nothing to do with being
an Ainu or being a Japanese. Good artwork is just good."'^ When he depicted
the mysticism of his connection to Mount Daisetsu, he couldn't use anything but
Ainu words — the poetic quality of its title sounds like the soft echoing of the gods
at play.
In 1978, the year after he created Kamuy-mintar, his life took a dramatic
turn. He divorced his second wife in May, dating his soon-to-be third wife Ryoko
44
before the dissolution. At the end of September Bikky held a one-man show in a
gallery in Sapporo, where he met the director of the high school in Otoineppu, a
very small village located in a remote northern district of Hokkaido. The direc-
tor, Takashi Kano, asked Bikky to come anci see the village, which is surrounded
by forests. "^^ When Bikky visited Otoineppu a month later he fell in love with
the magnificent natural environment. The village administrators, believing that
an association with Bikky, the well-known carver, would be good for the village,
suggested that Bikky use an abandoned elementary school as his studio. Bikky
desperately wanted to escape from his creative sliuTip and immediately made up
his mind to seize this opportunity. In November, he moved to Otoineppu from
Sapporo. Otoineppu was already in the beginning of a severe winter. The stage was
set for the most profound change in his life.
End Notes
1. Shibuzawii (1990:156-61).
2. The Kitanihon Folkcr.ih Company is one oi the largest suppHers ot Ainu tourist art, and in 1993 the
company made a net profit of six milhon dollars. It is owned by a Japanese businessman and currently all
of its carvers and other employees are Japanese. Ainu carvers have difficulty finding outlets for their work
without going through a Japanese wholesaler.
3. Asahi Shimbim (August 28, 1988). Shigeru Kayano, cultural leader ot the Nibutani band ot Ainu, men-
tioned at Bikky s wake: "I was asked to create Ainu art work tor the University of Hokkaido. Bikky was
visiting me, observing what I was doing, for a week or so. I happened to look up and I saw Bikky 'look-
ing' at the work with his eyes closed, slowly and lightly running his hands over the art. I was surprised as
I watched Bikky, as I never saw anyone look so deeply at something with their eyes closed. Later in the
week Bikky made me a bell which I still have in my room." (March 1989:54).
4. Asahi Shimhim (April 6, 1974).
5. B. Sunazawa, Te (Hands), from the catalogue of Ikki-ttnlioku (1988).
6. Personal correspondence with Katsumi Yazaki, October 24, 1981. Yazaki is an artist and a filmmaker in
Sapporo. The language used to describe wood in the letter is that of a man addressing a respected and
honored lover.
7. Ishikawa (1989).
8. Bikky would, in later lite, go on to make very fine examples of the ektishi, the male Ainu elders.
9. Interview, Kenichi Kawamura (October 1985). A check ot back issues ot Niiiioiiiil (icognipluc showed
two editions, January 1945 and March 1972, that teatured Haida and other Northwest tribal art. The
1945 issue had a series of paintings that emphasized traditional scenes ot Northwest Coast lite stich as a
pole-raising ceremony at a Haida village. The 1972 issue shows a Haida carver, Rutus Moody, working
on a model totem pole. The 1972 issue also shows a scene of decaying totem poles in the island, which
would aftect Bikky a great deal in a few years. Of the many totem poles Bikky carved, he never copied or
duplicated a totem pole from Canada's Northwest Coast or trom any other culture tiiat has "totem poles. "
It was the concept ot vertically stacked images overlapping and interacting with each other that intrigueti
Bikky.
10. Interview with Takeji Tlikahashi (April 8, 1994).
1 1. Interview with Katsumi Yazaki (April 15 and 20, 1994).
12. A copy of the handbill can be found in the Asahikawa City Library.
13. In 1946 the pan-hlokkaido Ainu Conference was held in Shizunai and established the Hokkaido Ainu
Association. Irs purpose was to improve and develop the social welfare ol the Ainu. However, while their
activity was stagnant for a time, a general meeting was held in 1960 and re-established the Association
in 1961. Its name was changed to the Hokkaido Utari Association from the Hokkaido Ainu Association.
The meaning of the Ainu was originally "the humans," but it was misused as a discriminatory word by
the Japanese government, and some Ainu had a feeling of the resistance to the word. So they changed the
name to the Utari which meant "brotherhood." The Hokkaido Utari Association is the largest Ainu orga-
nization in Japan and it has about 16,000 memberships (Asaji, Miyatake, and Nakama 1993:92-3).
14. Sanders (1986:137-8).
15. While critical of the Utari Association, he nevertheless lent his name and energy whenever called upon.
\G. Asahi Shimbiw (May 1, 1973).
17. Interview Junko Sunazawa (April 25, 1994).
18. Tikeji Takahashi interview (April 18, 1994).
19. There are more than two hundred Chinese characters that have the homonym of" the ki sound in the
Japanese kanji dictionary.
20. Auihi ShDiihiiii (July 19, 1976).
21. S. Sekiguchi (1978).
22. T. Endo (1990).
23. Ibid.
24. Bikky Sunazawa (1977).
IS. Asahi Slnmbuu (May 13, 1982).
26. Otoineppu means a place where an estuary of the river got muddy in the Ainu language. The village is
called a "village of forests," because more than eighty percent of the village land is filled with forests. The
experimental plantation of Hokkaido University Forest is also located nearby (1992 Otoineppu Village
Report, see map for location).
27. Auxin Shiuilntu (December 29, 1979).
47
Chapter 4
Totem Poles and Tall Trees: Bikky Returns to His Roots
(1978-1983)
Wood has an infinite mystery as a material. The average
tree around here has 200 growth rings, which means
that it has lived four times longer than me and has more
words than me. We have to know and listen to it. '
- The town of Otoineppu, only ninety kilometers (fifty-six miles) from
Hokkaido's northernmost point, is very cold and very far removed from Sapporo
with its museums and galleries — and even farther from Tokyo. It was close, how-
ever, to Bikky 's beloved trees. Bikky knew as soon as he arrived that he had lotmd
his new home, and it was here that he created some of his greatest work.
The environment seemed daunting when he arrived in November 1978.
The area was already in the grip of winter — a winter that leaves villagers snow-
bound more than six months a year. It is a place where it is normal to have more
than two meters (six feet) of snow on the ground, with temperatures well below
zero. Bikky lived among the forests in a tiny village of less than fifty people called
Osashima, a flat area along the Teshio River. But before long Bikky, Ryoko, and
his three children from his second marriage" had the abandoned elementary school
that was their new home all set up: he divided the school space into the living
and working space; the small gymnasium became the living area; one classroom
was turned into his studio, and another became a gallery. It was an unbelievably
large space when compared with his small workshop in Sapporo. Bikky named his
studio the Atelier Sanmore.''
Bikky had easy access in his new studio to raw materials because aroiuid
him stretched the experimental forest plantation of the Hokkaido University
Forest. The undulating mountains beyond the plantation are filled with old
growth forests with a combination of coniferous and deciduous trees. Bikky was
very sensitive to the properties of different kinds of wood, "All wood is alive," he
told one art critic, "and different kinds of woods have different personalities.'"* In
the past it had always been a struggle to find the wood he needed to produce art;
this new world with its ready availability of raw material was "like putting a fish
back into the water."'
Before long, Bikky had adopted a Glehns spruce {Picea glehnii Mast) in
the forest that inspired him. Older than the other trees, the three-hundred-year-old
giant stands more than forty meters (130 leet) high. He visited the tree in his spare
moments many times. Because of his love for this tree, his friends and the villagers
still call it "Bikkys tree." While it isnt a shrine or a sacred tree in the Shinto sense,
people nonetheless visit the tree and find it spiritually uplifting.
The Totem Pole at the Ainu Memorial Museum
Bikky got right to work. He had received a commission to carve a totem
pole*" to be placed in front ol the Ainu Memorial Museum founded by Kaneto
Kawamura in Chikabumi kotmu Asahikawa, where Bikky had been born and
raised. The museum had been remodeled, and the Ainu people of that area
wanted a symbolic work of art depicting the important beliefs of the Ainu for
its reopening. The new director of the museum, Kenichi Kawamura, Kaneto
Kawamuras son, asked Bikky to do the work. Bikky designed the pole, but asked
Ainu carvers to assist him so that the work would be an Ainu statement, not solely
Bikkys project. The ten-meter pole was erected in April 1979 (Fig. 4.1).
At the top of the pole is the owl, a very powerful protective god of the
kotan, below that is the itokpa, or family crest, of the Kawamuras, a stylized whale's
dorsal fin. Next are prayer instruments for the gods: an ikupasuy (prayer-stick) rest-
ing on a sake cup and saucer, tuki, followed by a dugout canoe. In the open space
of the canoe is a brown bear's head, the god of the mountains, and a killer whale,
the god of the seas.*^
50
The Talk-about-Trees Exhibition
When Bikky moved to Otoineppu, the villagers — mostly of Japanese
descent — thought that a "strange (Ainu) bear carver" had moved to the village.
They later found out that he was a sculptor creating contemporary art and that
was somehow threatening/' For these and other reasons it was difficult for Bikky
to be accepted in such a small community. He needed to have an opportunity
to communicate with the villagers, so he and his friends organized a small com-
munity event, which was called Ki o Katari Sakuhin-ten (The Talk-about-Trees
Exhibition). In the exhibition, held May 27 through June 1, 1979, Bikky high-
lighted Otoineppu as the "village of forests." He showed different kinds of art-
work made with wood, exhibiting his own sculpture, including surviving works
from his "Tentacle series. He also asked his artist friends in Tokyo and Sapporo
to participate in this event, many o{ whom were willing to display their paint-
ings, films, poetry, music, and sculpture alongside the work of local high school
students and villagers.
The "Talk-about-Trees Exhibition" became a bigger event in the community
year by year as the support from the community grew. Soon the village officials
began providing the operating budget and the executive committees. Through
the years the villagers seemed to gain a respect for and understanding of Bikky 's
abstract art, a very different type ot artistic expression than they usually appreci-
ated. It helped that Bikky accepted all reactions to his art, good or bad, with equal
grace. The exhibition was an annual event until Bikky s death in 1989.
Bikky helped the community realize that the forest's resources went
beyond timber for building materials by stimulating the villagers' imagination and
creativity. Village officials began to encourage small local industries to produce
wooden objects such as fine art, furniture, and craft items and tried to provide the
commercial access to sell them as representative of village products. In 1985 the
Otoineppu High School was founded to educate gifted teenagers from all over
Japan in woodworking and related arts.
The Toh Series and Other Works
Bikky started a new series ol simple, abstract sculptures entitled Toh
(Columnar Shapes) in 1979. The series was based on vertical forms, inspired
perhaps by the tall trees around him and the columnar art he had been creating.
Unlike the smooth finish of many traditional Japanese works, Bikky began
covering the entire surface of his work with a tightly controlled, scale-like texture
composed from small chisel marks.
The first work in the series, purchased by the village of Otoineppu, and
now on display at the high school, consists of two simple nara (Japanese oak
milled logs), fashioned into a cross, the top of the vertical log split to fit the
horizontal log. One commentator suggested that "the form reminds one of Christ
hanging on the cross, whose image of the nature's grandeur is overlapping the god
that Bikky learned from his parents."" One of Bikky 's close friends said, however,
that Bikky had no intention of suggesting a Christian symbol.''
In 1980 Bikky built a second studio, a prefabricated steel building in
which he installed an overhead traveling crane that allowed him to manipulate
large logs. He also installed a saw and power generator." One of his masterworks,
the massive, solid Kami no Shita (Tongue of God, Fig. 4.2) was one of the first
pieces to be created in his new studio. This large piece (201 x 1 16 x 54 centi-
meters or 80 X 45 X 21 inches) looks so natural that it seems to have been brought
from the forest as is. Many cracks and stains are prominent in the wood, and it
appears to have spent many years exposed to the sun, rain, and wind. The tightly
incised chisel marks on the surface invite viewers to touch it with their hands. It
seems to be a living thing and the power of its dignified presence is overwhelming.
The shape and title of the Tongue of God also suggests the "tongue" of
the ikupasuy, or prayer-stick, which is carved in a flattened shape and is the most
important spiritual article Ainu use to communicate with the gods' world (see
Sidebar 3, page 3). The Ainu consider it a living thing with a soul. In some Ainu
regions, artists incise the shape of an arrowhead or triangle into the tapered end
ol the prayer-stick, which is called the pariinpe, meaning a tongue. The pariinpe
delivers the message of the prayer to the gods. This monumental and massive
tongue might have been created to send a message to the highest ranking god who
ontrols the dispensation of nature's power.
One ol his most successful and interesting works is Kita no Dobntsu Tachi
(Northern Animals), created in 1980 (Fig. 4.3). The ten abstract pieces of various
sizes and shapes are always casually displayed on the floor. The tallest twisted
cylinder stands erect and several irregular, abstract shapes of wood surround it.
A long log lies on the floor completing the composition. The placement makes
the pieces appear to be natural, organic objects brought from the forest. The
4
Fig. 4.3: k'itii no Dohiitsii tacbi (Northern Animals), 1980.
thousands of tiny chisel marks on each piece indicate Bikky's tremendous love oi
the work. These ten pieces, all wooden animals, are the result of aggressively push-
ing abstraction from his first drawings of farm animals through the years. The
twisted cylinder with one projection might be a deer from the Hokkaido forests
and the surrounding small pieces might be abstractions of a tox, rabbit, bear, or
other wild animals or animals from Ainu mythology. Although they all are very
abstract, Bikky captured the essence of animal forms.
The Otoineppu Tower Totem Pole
In early June of 1980 the Otoineppu Village Office commissioned Bikky
to carve a totem pole for the seventieth anniversary of the village. The village
officials wanted to symbolize the promotion and the development ol the village
through the slogan of the "village ol forests." Bikky accepted the proposal and a
55
friend, Makoto Kawakami, owner of the local lumber company, found a four-
hundred-year-old Manchurian ash {tamo) in the Hokkaido University Forest for
him.'^ Bikky immediately made a complete design for the pole that symbolized the
local products and industries.
Bikky and four assistants worked feverishly for three months to complete
the pole in time for its September 6 unveiling. More than two hundred villagers
came to Bikkys studio to pick up the pole using three wagons. They pulled the
wagons by hand for more than nine kilometers to the train station. When the
totem pole arrived, the station square was filled with seven hundred waiting
villagers.'^ It was a memorable experience and brought community pride to the
villagers who worked together to
raise the pole. On the Northwest
Coast of North America, a totem-
pole-raising is always an exciting
event. This raising was no differ-
ent. The totem pole was named
"Otoineppu Tower." While the
pole was aesthetically pleasing,
Bikky did not take the area's fierce
winds into account when engineer-
ing the pole and it broke into pieces
during a horrific winter storm
several years later.
At the end of 1980, after
three years' absence, Bikky held a
small exhibition entitled "Bikky
Riding on A Wooden fiorse" in a
gallery in Sapporo. He exhibited
the unique furniture he created and
actually used at home. He had an
almost magical ability to transform
everyday household items into his
own fantastic objects. Several small
chairs were connected together, for
c- // CI I T w-ri D J r-ru ,no, examolc, aud entitled A^/V/'/' Tt^/'w.
Fig. 4.4: Shiko 110 Ton (The Birds ot Thought), 1981. r ' ^
56
Birds and Wooden Flowers
In 1981 Bikky received a commission from the Otoineppu ski resort
to carve three totem poles'^'and another commission from the Nakagawa
Experimental Forest of the Hokkaido University for a grouping of three poles,
which came to be called the Shiko Jio Tori (The Birds of Thought). An imaginary
bird rests on three joined pillars, which symbolize the past, present, and future.
They were erected on a snowy November 21 , just two days short of the three years
since Bikky moved to this area (Fig. 4.4).
While 1981 was a busy year lor Bikky, he took time to do some public
service by designing another pole for the village that would draw attention to a
sign that announced the village's traffic safety record. Acting as a consultant, he
did little of the carving, but designed the sign and supervised the work of the local
high school students. This kind of generosity was typical of Bikky.
Bikky began a new series in 1982 called Jiika (Wooden Flowers; Fig. 4.5).
In preparation, he spent six months gathering branches from the willow groves
Fig. A.5:Jiikti (Wooden Mowers), \
along the Teshio River near his home. He cut them every morning and brought
them to his studio, where he peeled the bark off each branch. Day after day
he would peel them, sometimes with the help of his wife. One day his wife
complained to him, "You cant make a living just peeling the bark off willow
branches." He replied, "You think I'm crazy, but I'm going to do great things. I'm
a genius."^'' Eventually, after six months, his studio was filled with huge piles of
willow branches equal to ten two-ton truck loads.
With his raw material in place, the pieces began to take shape. He started
with a young tree with only a few branches as a base. Viewers participated in
creating the pieces by adding a willow branch from the stack piled next to the
base, somewhat like a bird making its nest. Bikky strongly believed that audiences
should be allowed to participate in the making of art, to physically and spiritually
experience the art, to touch and play, to enjoy. Bikky took particular joy sharing
his work with mentally challenged children, giving them the opportunity to partic-
ipate in the arrangement of the wooden flowers. Their eyes shone as they touched
the willow branches, gently adding them to the creation by themselves.
Not only was the art participatory, but it evoked the Ainu ijiaiv, a simple
tree branch — often willow — finely shaved and tufted at one end and used in Ainu
ritual ceremonies (see Sidebar 3, page 3). This icon, beautiful in its simplicity, is
a part of the traditional Ainu way of life, and Bikky kept several of them around
his house. As nature is at the core of Ainu religion, and because Bikky felt such
a spiritual relationship with wood, it is only natural that he would give so much
energy to the wooden flower theme. The Ainu believe that after receiving a prayer,
the inaw turns into a bird to deliver the message. It's interesting to note that many
of Bikky s later works, regardless of the dominant theme, included birds.
Bikky was still actively producing the Juka series at the beginning of 1983.
He had no idea that he would find himself creating art thousands of miles away
from Ainu country by the end of the year. He would see first-hand the totem
poles that had inspired him and find himself at home among the native carvers of
the tribes of the Northwest Coast of Canada. This experience was to change the
remainder of his life.
End Notes
1. Interview with Bikky, September 1988, on Nichiyu Bcjiitsn-kaii broadcast, February 1 1, 1990.
2. Bikky inA his second wife, Junko amicably agreed that the children would stay with h\m. Soon after they
moved to Otoineppu, Bikky 's girlfriend, Ryoko, moved in, and aker a period of time, they were married.
3. Bikky liked to name his studios. His first studio in Sapporo, actually a room in his house, was named
"more" in English, and his studio at the craft company in Sapporo was named "more and more," again in
English. Atelier means "studio" in French. San means "three" in Japanese, so the name means "more, more,
and more." (Interview with Makoto Kawakami, January 23, 1995).
4. Hokkai Tnnes (December 6, 1980).
5. Nichiyo Bijutsu'kan (broadcast February 11, 1990).
6. Although the Ainu did not have the custom ol creating totem poles in ancient times, they have been
erecting small "totem poles" in the tourist areas since the end of World War II. They remind me of" the
carved wooden Indian statues that were put in front of cigar stores and other shops in America aroimd the
turn of the century and earlier.
7. Kaneto Kawamura (1893-1977) was the hereditary chief and a grandson of the famous Ainu chief
Monokute in Peniun-kotan. Kaneto was a well-respected person who contributed a great deal to the Ainu
human rights struggle throughout his life. He founded the Ainu Museum in Asahikawa after World War
II (Arai Genjiro 1992:65—7). After his death, his son Kenichi inherited the responsibility of managing the
museum and preserving the Ainu culture in that area.
8. K. Kawamura (1990).
9. Hokkaido Shinibun (June 27, 1981).
10. Bikky completed his tenth "Tentacle" work using a local tree, a Japanese oak, at the end of January, 1979
(Asahi Shirulmu, January 30, 1979).
11. Nichiyo Bijutsu-kan (broadcast February 1 1, 1990).
12. Interview with Makoto Kawakami (January 12, 1995).
13. Hokkai Times (January 29, 1980).
14. Kawakami was more than a friend in the usual sense. Although Bikky had many friends, Kawakami was
one of a small group of men that Bikky confided in on all matters. He also spent a great deal of time in
the forest with Bikky selecting just the right trees for his many projects.
15. Okamoto (1981).
16. Unfortunately during the mid 1990 s a severe storm toppled one of the poles at the ski resort. A new
maintenance man, not knowing the importance of the pole, thought it was worthless junk, and burned it.
17. A. Motoi (1994:296).
Chapter 5
Transforming Visions: Bikl<y and tine Northwest Coast
of Canada (1983)
when I first met Haida artist Bill Reid, my stereotype
of Indians was shattered. Here was a Native person who
was successfiA-l and respected, someone with pride. '
A Serendipitous Visit
In the summer of 1983 Bikky was unexpectedly drawn into an adventure
that would mark a turning point in both his personal and artistic life. The catalyst
for change was Douglas Sanders, Professor of Law at the University of British
Columbia. Dr. Sanders, an expert on legal issues
concerning Canadian and other indigenous peoples,
traveled to Japan to study Ainu radicalism. While
lecturing on the Indigenous Protection Act at the
University of Hokkaido, he made the acquaintance
of Professor Kenji Sanekata, who was on the faculty
of Law at the university. Dr. Sanekata and his fiance
Masumi invited Sanders to travel with them in north-
ern Hokkaido. Masumi had read about Bikky and on a
whim they dropped by his studio.
Sanders, who collected indigenous art h'om
around the world, had enjoyed the Ainu tourist art he
had seen around Hokkaido and recognized the distinc-
tive design elements on the carvings Bikky had in his
workshop. Sanders asked many questions related to
Bikky's cultural identity and where he fit into Ainu art.
Sidebar 8
Bikky's Tools
Ainu men have been proud
of producing a variety of
carvings using only a small
home-made knife called
the makiri, and Bikky was
no different. The makiri
was used not only
for carving utilitarian pjg_ 3 g j. yv/,,^„,/
household objects
such as bowls but also for the exquisitely
carved ceremonial objects such as the all-
important ikupasuy and inaw (see Sidebar
3). Ainu boys learned to master the makiri
by watching their fathers, grandfathers,
and other elders, and when one had mas-
tered these skills, the community consid-
ered him to be an independent carver as
well as a man. Ainu men always wore the
makiri hanging from their belts encased in
an intricately carved wooden sheath, the
design engraved with great care. A man's
carving skill was judged by the quality of
both design and technique found on the
sheath and hilt of the makiri.
{ 'onliiiiic\ (III fhixc 62
61
Bikky Tools continued
Ainu women also had their own makiri,
called the menoko-makiri (woman's knife),
used for cutting clothes, preparing food,
or skinning hides. This knife was also
culturally important — its sheath and hilt
was carved elaborately by men, and when
a young man was interested in a girl, he
carved a menoko-makiri and gave it to her.
If she accepted it and wore it on her side,
she accepted his love.'
When Bikky was a child, he learned to
carve in the traditional manner using the
makiri from his father, who was greatly
respected for his traditional carvings.
Later, when Bikky sought new carving
challenges, he used it almost exclusively
to create the beautiful Bikky mon'yo in his
jewelry. While commercial carving knives
and small chisels would have given a
cleaner, more precise cut, Bikky felt that
work produced with commercial tools was
too sterile.
As he grew professionally, he began to
carve larger sculptures, and he had to
teach himself to use a wide variety of
hand tools such as chisels, hand axes,
and other chopping and shaping tools.
He also used power tools such as drills,
pneumatic chisels, and chain saws to
rough out a piece, but they were only
a means to an end. Bikky loved to work
aggressively with hand tools. There was
something sensual about his swinging an
axe to a rhythm, wood chips flying, his
face shinning with sweat, grunting with
every swing of the axe. He often roughed
out several works at once. Later, perhaps
days later, he would use progressively
smaller hand tools to the point he would
often just caress the wood with the chisel
creating a texture for a new life form.
The process of creating a work brought
physical pleasure to Bikky, and hand tools
were his way of communicating directly
with the feminine spirit of the wood. He
began using an elbow adze, favorite tools
of the Native artists, after his work with
Bill Reid in British Columbia.
I visited his studio after his death and
the experience was truly surreal. On the
wall above a work bench, each in its
own place, were more than one hundred
carving tools such as makiri, larger knives,
Although Bikky had begun to come to terms with
his racial identity, he wasnt happy about the Ainu
questions, nor was he happy about being classified as
an Ainu artist. Sanders did not know that Bikky was
deeply conflicted about his heritage and thought Bikky
was withdrawn and uncommunicative. Bikky finally
became firiendlier after Sanders asked him knowl-
edgeable questions about the design elements on his
carvings. Bikky took them into his studio to show on
the blackboard how the elements could be modified
and combined. He further explained he had developed
many of the current designs found in Ainu tourist's art,
and Sanders realized that many of the distinctive Ainu
designs he saw in the gilt shops all over Hokkaido were
indeed derived from Bikky s work.
Later that day, Bikky mentioned that he had
received a cultural exchange scholarship from the
government ol Hokkaido, but he hadn't decided
where he wanted to go.' Sanders encouraged him
to visit British Columbia to experience the unique
woodcarvings found there, because the native people
of Canada's Northwest Coast had one of the strongest
woodcarving traditions in the world. Sanders also
insisted that Bikky meet the Native artists and discuss
the problems and issues common to the First Nations
people of Canada and the Ainu. ^ Sanders told Bikky
that he could introduce him to several Native artist
friends of his, including Bill Reid, the famous Haida
carver.
Bill Reid (1920-1998) is one of Canada's pre-
eminent Native artists. Considered a national treasure,
he is widely recognized as having contributed to the
revival of Haida art traditions. Born in Victoria, British
Columbia, to a father of Scottish/German origin and
a mother of Haida descent, he is the great grand-
62
nephew of the famous Haida artist Charles Edenshaw
(c. 1839— 1920) who was one of the greatest artists of the
Northwest Coast. Recognized worldwide tor his skill and
artistry, Bill Reid's work is prized by museums, institu-
tions, and private collectors throughout North America,
Europe, and Japan. He received honorary degrees from
several universities, the Lifetime National Aboriginal
Achievement award, and three of his works were issued
as Canadian national postage stamps. Perhaps the great-
est tribute was the Canadian government issuing a new
twenty-dollar bill in 2004 with his art featured on the
back of the bill.
Traveling to Canada made sense to Bikky, who
had long been drawn to the work of Native artists. In
October, Bikky and his third wife Ryoko arrived in
Vancouver, British Columbia. Bikky recalled standing
on foreign soil for the first time in his life:
Bikky Tools continued
chisels, several adzes, hand saws, axes of
different sizes, drill bits, and power tools.
The studio, a converted school room
from the late nineteenth century, had the
smell of wood. The only light in the room
came from the sun streaming in through
a window. It was quiet, the same sense
of quiet one feels sitting in a church. On
the floor were several inches of saw dust,
wood shavings and small chunks of wood
that the Spirit of the Wood gave up as
Bikky worked to release the image from
its rough form. There were /now on the
walls, and a bear skull — kimun-kamuy, the
god of the mountain — over the door. As
I looked at the tools of his trade, I knew
these were not "toys for boys," and I was
not in a workshop. I was in kamuy-mintar,
one of the Ainu "playground of the
gods." I felt I was in the presence of the
spirit of the master carver of the Ainu.
Sidebar Note
1. Kayano (1978:29).
/ chose Canada because the country is in the same latitude as
Hokkaido and has a similar distribution of trees like Hokkaido.
Moreover, I have been interested in totem poles for a long time, and I
wanted to carve a totem pole, which was my simple motive for going
to Canada^
Landing in Vancouver, Bikky was instantly impressed with the areas
natural setting: the rugged coastal mountains to the north, the Georgia Straits and
the Pacific Ocean to the west, and the farmland to the east. It was the middle of
the autumn, and the trees were in full color.
Dr. Sanders took Bikky and his wife Ryoko to the home of Setsuko and
Pierre Pieoche in Vancouver, where they stayed while looking for a permanent
place to live. Setsuko, an artist, and Pierre, threw a party to introduce Bikky to the
local artists community, including Bill Reid. The party had the desired affect; Bill
Reid invited Bikky to work in the Reid studio on Granville Island, an artists colony
and one of the major tourist centers in the city of Vancouver. In appreciation for
Setsuko's kindness, Bikky carved an abstract likeness of Setsuko (Fig. 5.1), which
63
Fig 5-1. A: figurative sculpiure, "Sersuko doll,"
1983. Woocf: 85.0 X 16.0 X 17.5 cm. Owned
by Setsuko & Pierre Pieoche, Vancouver, B.C..
he titled "Setsuko doll." The one-meter tall figure
is made in two sections: the top half is the head, a
rounded portion with an inverted triangle flanked on
each side with graceful S-shapes carved to represent
her hair style at the time; the bottom half consists
of a body and legs made of one piece with no body
contouring, though two natural branches extend-
ing out from the body near the top, acting as arms.
The two sections are carved so that the top half,
which is supported by two short pegs coming out
of a simple block of rounded wood, can sit on the
bottom half at different angles. This develops tension
as the top bends to the right or left, while the entire
piece stands straight. As Bikkys only known abstract
humanoid figure with a human model, it is a unique
and important piece.
Sanders also took Bikky to the University of
British Columbia's Museum of Anthropology a day
or two after he arrived. Bikky studied the museum's
totem poles with great interest as Sanders pointed
out the different tribal styles of totem poles and their
symbolism.^
Totem Poles and a Potlotch
Before he began his work at Bill Reid's studio, Bikky traveled with his
new friends to the Tsimshian Gitksan area on the Upper Skeena river in north-
ern British Columbia, where totem poles erected in the late nineteenth and early
twentieth centuries stand side by side with new ones. They first went to the village
of 'Ksan, which means "River of Mists, ' where a traditional Gitksan village had
been constructed in 1970 as a tourist attraction and artists' colony, including the
Kitanmax School of Northwest Coast Indian Art ('Ksan), which provides training
and education to young native artists on the values and artistic skills needed to
develop Northwest Coast art.''
64
Bikky was particularly interested in the tools the Native artists used in
the carving shed at 'Ksan, especially the wide variety of adzes: the D-adze, elbow
adze, and straight adze, among others. Bikky, as is the Ainu tradition, used a chisel
to form his work. He observed that the Northwest Coast carvers use their tools
completely opposite to that of the Ainu, carving toward themselves and holding
the knife with the blade coming from the little finger side of the hand, while the
Ainu carve away from the body with the knife on the thumb side.^ He asked many
questions of the carvers in the carving shed through a translator.
Throughout the area the skilled Native artists were respected. Museums
and galleries exhibited their work as fine art, and there were many lavish books on
Native art and artists available in the museum gift shops.'* The prices the galleries
and gift shops charged for the art staggered Bikky. He saw that the Native artist
and the non-Native art lover shared a pride for native art, in stark contrast to
the disrespect that the Japanese public and artworld held for the native art of the
Ainu. ' Bikky often lamented that there wasn't a single publication on contempo-
rary Ainu artists in Japan.
As impressed as Bikky was with the respect shown Native artists, it was
seeing nineteenth-century totem poles, standing and fallen, that moved him the
most and transformed his approach to his art. He was especially moved by the old
totem poles that had fallen down and were decaying:
Most of the nineteenth-century totem poles and even those from
the beginning of the twentieth century aren't standing. They've fallen
to the ground and have begun to rot. Still, they were terrifically
magical It's clear the Native artists observed the struggle of nature.
When I saw the totem poles, I had to throw away all my old ideas of
what they were. I hadn't realized how serious they were. Seeing the
real totem poles was so overwhelming that I felt nauseous. I hadn't
grasped the meaning, the artistry, or the gigantic monumentality of
the totem poles. ' '
Over the decades moss had covered the fallen totem poles, and they had
been scarred by wind, rain, sun, and snow. Some poles also had a rough and dry
surface covered with hundreds of tiny worm holes but even decay couldn't elimi-
nate the beauty of the carvings. To Bikky, they were powerful reminders of Native
history, having stood through dramatic changes in the people's forttmes over time.
One of the oldest totem poles, "Hole-through-the-Sky," is still standing
in Kitwancool, its village of origin (Fig. 5.2), and it was very interesting to Bikky.
This pole, erected in the late nineteenth century, depicts a myth telling of a family's
origin in a wolf migration. A large hole at the bottom of the pole was used for
ceremonial entrances, and the complicated design symbolizes the primordial age of
the family myth. Multiple human beings and various animals are interconnected, a
fine example of the juxtaposition of visual elements that is one of the most dynamic
aspects of Northwest Coast art.''
The interconnection and interchangeability of human and animal forms
resonated with the themes Bikky pursued in both "Animal" and "Tentacle (a
maze)." He had wanted to show that all living things are connected even if their
shapes are different. Bikky was especially impressed by the way the design elements
wove in and out of each other.
And then there were the frogs. Sanders pointed otit a frog design in an old
totem pole and said with a smile, "your totem." Bikky loved it and was fascinated
by how the frog designs were incorporated in the totem poles, especially the way
frogs came out of body parts of other animals or humans.' ' For example, tears
coming out of an eye might be shaped like a frog, and Bill Reid's thirteen meter
(forty-three feet) totem pole at the Museum of Anthropology, University of British
Columbia, features a frog coming out of a bears mouth, which delighted Bikky. He
said, "Obviously how to incorporate frogs into the elements appears to be some-
thing extraordinary, but it's also just simply great sculpture. Frogs suddenly appear
coming out of finger nails or out from the eyes, and in the mouths (of humans or
creatures), just incredible!"''* Bikky was deeply embarrassed that he had called his
columnar art totem poles. Now that he really knew what a totem pole was, had
touched them and spoken with them, and they with him, he never used the word
"totem" to describe his work again and tried to correct others when they did.
When Bikky returned to Vancouver, Bill Reid invited him to a potlatch
in Skidegate in the Queen Charlotte Islands (Haida Gwaii), home of the Haida
First Nations people. Skidegate, "Place of Stones," located on the southern tip of
Graham Island, used to be known for its massive standing totem poles and cedar
plank houses. In 1978 Bill Reid had carved and erected the first totem pole to
go up in Skidegate in more than ninety years and was welcomed into the com-
munity. A potlatch'^ was held for the hereditary chieftainship of the wolf clan of
Tanu. More than two hundred people were invited to witness the event, and it
was held in the community hall.
Bikky, as an Ainu, was an unusual
guest, but the indigenous man
from Japan was well received by
the Haida people at the potlatch,
who treated him almost like a kin
brother. He felt honored when he
was introduced during the potlatch
and wished that he knew enough
English to communicate with the
people arotmd him."'
The hosting group
displayed their hereditary posses-
sions, sang their songs, and gave
speeches. Dancers swayed with
their button or Chilkat blankets
flowing gracefully about them. The
tremendous power of the masks
reminded the guests of the his-
tory of the hosting group. While
not understanding the potlatch, it
was marvelous drama for Bikky.
He enjoyed the music and dance
so much that he created a painting, bidian Dance A (Fig. 5.3), in honor of the
ceremony.
At first glance Indian Da)ice A seems subtle and subdued. The colors are
soft with highlights of red, black, blue, and white in varying densities ranging
from saturated black to a cool blue battleship gray. Done in crayon and watercolors,
there is activity to the four edges of the paper, coming from color, density, and
thin scratch lines that have a feeling of spontaneity to them. There is, however,
a feeling of confusion perhaps reflecting how Bikky felt as an outsider during
the potlatch. Painted in Canada and hung in the "Images of British Columbia"
exhibition at the Vancouver Artist Gallery, it incorporated elements from Chilkat
blankets and the Northwest Coast Indian masks.
Fig. 5.3: huli.iH DmueA. 1983.
68
Bill Reid's Studio
Bikky began working in Bill Reids studio on Granville Island as soon as he
returned to Vancouver. Granville Island is a working artists' community, vibrant
with life, energy, and creativity. There are many facilities for active artists such as
studios, art schools, galleries, theaters, and so on. It is also an important tourist
attraction for the city. Bikky loved being a part of the scene.
Because of his visit to the 'Ksan school where he saw so many students
carving with the adze, Bikky wanted Bill Reid to show him how to use it. A
Vancouver newspaper reported, "He has been accustomed to using a large chisel
and mallet to hew out his creations but was intrigued to see Indians swinging
razor sharp, short-handled adzes that left a distinctive finish on cedar carvings.""^
In a 1983 photograph (Fig. 5.4) Bill Reid shows Bikky how to use the contempo-
rary type of elbow adze with a steel blade.' ' Bikky practiced it and soon became
proficient with the new tool. He liked it so well that he eventually made one for
himself in Vancouver.""
Fig. 5.4: Photo of Bill Ruid and Bikky using .m elbow .idze. lo the right is Pierre Pieoche ot Vaneouver.
69
Bikky spent almost all of his time in the studio for the next two months.
Even though he couldnt speak English very well, the studio became a gathering
place for many people due in part to his open and friendly personality. He enjoyed
the Canadians' willingness to express their opinions about his work and their
willingness to be open to his abstract works."'
Images of British Columbia Exhibition
"Bikky looked like a bear, drank like a fish, and worked
like a beaver," said Bill Reid?'
In spite of Bikky s social life and his continued drinking, he produced
an amazingly large number of sculptures, paintings, and sketches during his
stay in Vancouver, many of which appeared in the exhibition "Images of British
Columbia." Bikky had sketched totem poles, trees, patterns, and scenery during
his travels around British Columbia; when he returned to Vancouver, he would
select his favorites and add color to them. He loved to create spontaneous drawings,
sometimes dabbing his fingers in paint or ink.
Among the paintings exhibited was an untitled abstract painting (Fig. 5.5)
that evolved from a sketch Bikky made in the Queen Charlotte Islands. It is
influenced by the characteristic formline design elements of the Northwest Coast
art. Ovoids with eye lid lines are scattered throughout the painting along with
split-U forms and
crescent shapes. He
has used the char-
acteristic colors of
the Northwest Coast
palette: black, red, and
white.
Fig. 5.5: Untitled [\iiiuiiil;, I'iN.i.
70
In the sculptures he created while in Vancouver, Bikky abstracted the
sculptural forms of Northwest Coast art. For instance, a simple undecorated bowl
represents a mountain sheep horn bowl with its elegant and gracefully outswept
shape (Fig. 5.6). However, Bikky carved it in a vertical
position to show its purely sculptural form (Fig. 5.7).
Fig. 5.6: Mountain sheep liorn bowl.
Another example is the rendering oi the
awesome Kwakwaka'wakw mask of Dzoonokwa, the
mythical giant wild woman (Fig. 5.8); Bikky took
the essence of the image and interpreted it in his
own abstract form, which focuses solely on the lips,
emphasizing the sensual relationship to his subject
and reminiscent of his Ki-men masks (Fig. 5.9).
Fig. 5.7: Bikky's bow, {/imigcs of British
Columbia), 1983.
Fig. 5.8: Kwakwaka'wakw mask ol U/oonokv
Fig. 5.9: HikL\ s .ilisii.iLi mask (liiiiigcs of
Biilidt Cnliiiiihhi), 1983.
71
The largest of his Northwest Coast sculptures, and one of the few Bikky
named, is titled The Watchmati (Fig. 5.10). He derived the title from Bill Reid's
The Three Watchmen (Fig. 5.1 1), which had so impressed Bikky. Reid's work illus-
trates a well-known Haida legend about three brother chiefs who fall in love with
a trickster. Raven. Raven fools them
and turns them into beautiful women.
Unfortunately the remainder of the
legend is lost and we don't know the rest
of the story." ' These three brothers are
usually placed in the top of the totem
poles to guard villages, and Bill Reid had
created poles that incorporated these
images as well as a frog coming out of
a bear's mouth. Bikky's Watchman may
very well be a tribute to Bill Reid, even
though there is no similarity in style.
The oval shape at the top faces the viewer
and looping "arms" seem to suggest the
"welcome figure" in Northwest Coast art.
There is a slender torso in the middle,
followed by two legs with two large
projections at the top of both legs. The
two projections appear to be some sort
of mask, one of which resembles a bear.
Fig. 5.10: "The Watchman" (from Images of Brituh Columbia),
1983. Yellow cedar; 210.0 x 52.5 x 52.0 cm..
72
Fig. 5.1 1: A modern frontal house pole by Bill Reid,
assisted by Douglas Cranmer, at the Museum ot
Anthropology at the University of British Columbia
(URC; 50030).
Returning to Ainu Country
After finishing his successful
exhibition in January 1984, it was the
time for Bikky to go back to Ainu cotui-
try. He wrote about his impressions:
At my first meeting with Haida artist
Bill Reid, my stereotype of Indians was
shattered. Here was a Native person ivho
was successful and respected, someone
with pride And I shall never forget
the depth of the grandeur of the ivildness
(in Canada). Although our Hokkaido
has a rich and magnificent nature,
the nature of Canada is too vast to
understand.'^
Bikky truly loved the natural
world of Canada, and he was eager to
return to Canada as soon as he could. He
also greatly admired the indigenous art
of the Northwest Coast and was pleased
to have been immersed in it. Most of all,
he gained unparalleled insight into what
it meant to be a native artist. He was
inspired by the respect shown artists like
Bill Reid, and he hoped one day to create
an Ainu "art laboratory" like the com-
munities in Granville Island and 'Ksan
and perpetuate his dream that he and the
Ainu could have self-respect, be respected
by the people and the government of
Japan, and by art communities around
the world.
End Notes
1. 5/7w/>o (November 18, 1983).
2. The Hokkaido prefectural government provides a special scholarship tor five selected local artists for the
purpose ol a cultural exchange undertaking every year. These five artists can choose any country that they
want to go to (Baiikaha Shnipo, November 18, 1983). The purpose of the scholarship is to give them a
chance to have an artistic cultural experience.
3. Ascihi Shnnbiin (Oaoher 7 , 1983).
4. a/w/t.?/;.? 5/7/w/)(7 (November 18, 1983).
5. "Most ot the older sculptures displayed at the UBC Museum ot Anthropology were acquired through
purchase in the 1950s by the Totem Pole Preservation Committee, established by the UBC. Museum of
Anthropology and the British Columbia Provincial Museum." (Halpin, 1983:48).
6. Although the school is located in the Tsimshian region, the school has taught a broad range ol artistic
styles lound throughout the Northwest Coast. While the original instructors included non-native artists
Bill Holm and Duane Pasco, and native artists such as Chief Tony Hunt (KwakiutI) and Robert Davidson
(Haida), later instructors were almost exclusively native artists. The school has trained many talented art-
ists such as Frieda Diesing (Haida) and Dempsey Bob (Tihltan-Tlingit).
7. Japanese wood carvers also carve away from the body.
8. Native American artistic creativity went through various stages of descriptive terminology, from being a
simple trade item, to "scientific specimens," "ethnographic artifacts," "craft," "primitive art," "curio," to
a gradual recognition of art as "fine art" in Canada and the United States in the twentieth century. There
are several reasons for these shifts, but one of the most important was the transformation of the incor-
poration of Native art as part of a self-serving national artistic identity to including Native heritage into
the respective nation state. Canada has, through its museum curators and scholars, developed a growing
national appreciation for the values and status of objects of Native creativity, elevating the perception of
Native creativity from "crak/artilact" to "fine art" since the 1960s. For example, the 1967 exhibition.
Arts of Raven: Masterworks by the Northwest Coast Indian at the Vancouver Art Gallery was truly the first
exhibition to bring about a perception shift of First Nations objects as "art" or "fine art" in Canada. The
validation legitimized the new description in the institutions of the art world, including artists, critics, the
interested public, and at the government level, so important at the time, greatly facilitated the change in
the perception and evaluation ol objects.
9. Yamakawa (1988:208-9).
10. Since Bikky's death several books on contemporary Ainu art have been published. Most are photographic
introductions ol an individual artist's work often with brief" comments Irom the artist or friends, with
no critical analysis of their work. Some books were published by the artists themselves. These include
Ohtsuka (1993), Chiri and Yokoyama (1995), Toko (1995), and Ogawa and Kato (1996). And, since his
death, several volumes have been published on Bikky's work, including Hariu et al. (1989), Sunazawa R
(1990), Asakawa (1996), Shibahashi (2001) Museum of Contemporary Art, Sapporo (2001).
1 1 . Bankalta Shinpo (November 18, 1983).
12. Bancrolt-Hunt and Forman (1979:38-9). Bikky was very interested in not only the artistry of this pole,
but of the mythology as well. Bikky learned a love of traditional stories through his mother, who was well
known as a teller ol yukar, Ainu oral epic stories. Bikky would have heard hundreds cJuring his life time
and incorporated elements from the myths in his work.
13. Photographs taken by Bikky during the Canadian experience show many more pictures ot frog segments
on totem poles than of any other figure.
14. Yamakawa (1988:197).
15. The Northwest Coast potlatch was "the occasion at which a traditional name, rank or hereditary privilege
was claimed through dances, speeches and the distribution of property to those invited. The group host-
ing a potlatch displayed their hereditary possessions, which included songs, dances and masks, they recited
the origins of these rights and the history of their transmission, and bestowed the new rank and name
upon the member now entitled to use them. The ceremony was completed by distributing gifts to the
guests. The guest groups, by witnessing the claims made, validated and sanctioned the status displayed and
claimed" (Cole and Chaikin 1990:5).
16. Interview with Ryoko Sunazawa (April 6, 1994).
17. Interview with Ryoko Sunazawa (September 17, 1993).
18. The Province Newspaper (lAnuiLiy 2, 1984).
19. By 1983, Bill Reid had been suffering from Parkinson's disease for approximately eight years. He contin-
ued to create wonderkil art with the aid of his assistants.
20. During my visit to his studio in Otoineppu, I counted three adzes, and I saw a video tape ot Bikky using
one.
21. Bikky tried very hard to learn as much English as possible. With his outgoing personality and his willing-
ness to try new English words, he was able to communicate surprisingly well. (Yamakawa 1988: 199).
22. Interview (December 19, 1993). Reid went on to say that while Bikky always seemed to be drinking, he
never saw Bikky drunk during the day. Pierre Pieoche, Bill Reid's friend, states that in a conversation with
Bikky about his drinking, Bikky said that "carving was too dangerous ro attempt while drunk, but it was
safe to be drunk while painting," and he ohen was (interview February 6, 1994).
23. This legend was recounted in a 1986 videotape entitled, "The Three Watchmen" by Bill Roxborough,
and Michael Brodie. The production describes the work of Haida artist Robert Davidson as he creates
three totem poles. Commissioned in 1983, the poles were erected on August 8, 1984, in the atrium of the
Maclean Hunter Building in downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
24. Bikky later stated in another newspaper interview that "'perlect nature exists in Canada" (Asahi Sliinibtin,
Aug. 28, 1988).
Chapter 6
The Northern King: Final Years (1984-1989)
One day the Northern Qiieeti asked the Northern King,
"why are you so proud? " He replied, ''well, look at the
maps. Old ones. New ones. The North is always located
at the top of the map, isn't it? The North is always on
top. " The King looked at the Qiieen quietly
and smiled. '
Bikky returned to Otoineppu from Canada on January 10, 1984, and went
immediately to work in his studio. The visit had transformed every aspect ol his
art, and the final five years of his life were to be intensely productive and creative.
Not only had he been inspired by the artistic freedom and self-respect he found
in the Native artists in Canada, but he was stimulated by watching artists work
who were proud of their heritage and their art and who actively studied it. He was
especially impressed by Bill Reid's stature in the mainstream art community and
his recognition as an important Native and contemporary artist.
Before his visit to Vancouver, Bikky had been ambivalent about his Ainu
heritage and his identification as an Ainu artist, but his experience in Canada
helped him realize that he could be a modern sculptor as well as an Ainu artist.
He also became more comfortable with public expressions ol his native heritage.
He began to think about the future of Ainu art in general and more consciously
planned the direction of his own art.
Bikky's three months in British Columbia had also given him a new
perspective on the natural environment in Hokkaido and his relationship to it as
an artist. He told the v4W7/ Shimbim in spring, 1983, that he felt he was beginning
to understand that his artistic style expressed a bond with nature,"' and his first
exhibition after his return, in March, was called Siuuizaiva Bikky Exhibition-Furiko
(A Pendulum), because, he said, his mind kept going back and forth between the
natural worlds oi Canada and Hokkaido like "a pendulum." His interaction with
the natural world had always been important to him, but it was not until he went
to Canada that he began to think consciously about his role in nature, not an
interaction with, but being a part of nature.
Visiting Canada had re-awakened Bikkys "northern consciousness," and
this became one of his major themes after his return. To Bikky, this consciousness
celebrated the rigor and grandeur of northern lands: the harsh weather, icy moun-
tains, tall forests, deep snows, and long winter nights. He also recognized with
a new clarity the importance of northern peoples' adaptability to these extremes
and their strong links with their ancestors and traditions. Bikky observed that the
Canadian First Nations peoples' pride in their culture, which had survived despite
great upheaval, was similar to that of the Ainu, including their genius for creativity
that helped sustain their culture. Bikky responded to this pride, believing that it
was something shared by all northern indigenous people. Influenced by Canadian
Native's use of their own culture in their work, Bikky 's sculpture became more spe-
cifically Ainu in its themes.
Because of his visit, Bikky began to think of himself as a "Northern King"
who challenged nature not by controlling it with self-serving authority or power
but collaborating with it through his endless creativity and with his strong pride
in being an Ainu and an artist. He, as an artist and a king, could reconstruct and
revive the trees that were cut down and give them a new life and order in his king-
dom of the north. In turn, nature would complete his artworks. Bikky once told a
friend, "These wooden sculptures will grow after leaving my hands. Bikky, fasci-
nated by the weathering of the many old totem poles he saw in Canada, believed
the actual decomposition was perhaps that most powerful stage in the life of a
wooden sculpture. Not only did he understand that the breakdown of tissue was
the natural order of things, but more importantly he saw that this process was
in keeping with the Ainu spiritual practice that required gifts of the gods to be
returned to Gods' Land. In his artwork of the next five years, this conscious sense
of channeling nature back to the gods wove its way through all of his work.
Columns, Not Totem Poles
Increasingly recognized as one oi Hokkaido's leading artists, Bikky received
numerous invitations to participate in museum and gallery exhibitions in Sapporo
and other northern cities and in the rest of Japan. He also received a number of
important local commissions that allowed him to explore some of the themes that
had emerged after visiting Canada.
In 1985 Bikky created three large site-specific columnar pieces. He carved
the first, an unnamed work called a "totem pole" locally, fi^r Kamisunagawa-cho,
in the western part of Hokkaido near where Bikky s father Koa-kanno had been
born. This simple pole stands at one end of a new bridge, called Yacho no Hashi
(the Wild Birds' Bridge) for the recordings of local birds' twittering that play when
people walk across the bridge. Bikky s seven-meter high pole is topped with a
Fig. 6.1: Ml' (Buds), 1985. Fig. 6.2: A house post in situ, Cowichan, V.incouvcr
isl.uul, Rrilisli ( '.olunihi.i, 19tli c.
woodpecker with a long extended beak, below which are three eggs in a nest. This
was the first columnar artwork Bikky created after coming back from Canada, and
was the last one to be called a totem pole — his confrontation with the "real" totem
poles of Canada was so intense that he felt ashamed of his ignorance of totem
poles and refused to call them such. This, however, was the name it took on in
Kamisunagawa-cho.
The other columnar work is a two-piece set of abstract sculptures entitled
Me (Buds; Fig. 6.1), referring to the intellectual growth of the students, placed
in the middle of the courtyard at the Asahikawa Professional High School to
celebrate the twenty-fifth anniversary of the founding of the school. The two
abstract figures, carved from Japanese oak, face the same direction. The three-
meter (ten feet) high figure, the taller of the two, is completely abstract, with an
elongated rectangular torso with a long neck and a small conical shaped "head."
It resembles a whaler's hat similar to those worn by the Makah and Nuu-chah-
nulth people, which Bikky saw many examples of while in Canada. These figures
are somewhat reminiscent of "welcome figures" or "house posts" of the Northwest
Coast (Fig. 6.2); the smaller figure particularly resembles the old house post from
the Halkomelem area of the Coast Salish now displayed in the entrance showcase
of the British Columbia Provincial Museum in Victoria, which Bikky enjoyed
visiting. While it's impossible to know for sure if this house post directly inspired
Bikky to carve these figures, the formal elements of both works are prominent.
As a realization of Bikky 's collaboration with nature, in the years since
these sculptures were erected, cracks have appeared from the exposure to the
rigorous Hokkaido environment. Both the Bird Bridge column and Buds now have
a mysterious and organic presence of their own, much like the aging totem poles
Bikky saw in the old Gitksan territorial areas of the Upper Skeena River in British
Columbia.
The Wind
In 1986 Bikky's relationship with nattire began to be focused on the theme
of "wind, ' perhaps symbolizing his psychological state following his return from
Canada — but also connecting to the important role that the wind played in Ainu
culture. He seemed to be released from the restricted intellectual framework he
had created for himself in the past such as his cultural identity and his artistic
goals. Like the wind blowing through nature, he longed for freedom as an artist,
an Ainu, and as a person. This can be seen in a poem Bikky wrote about the wind
shortly before his death. It is his most famous poem:
Wind,
You are a four-headed and four-legged monster.
As you are so furious, people love your intermediate moments, which
are called the four seasons.
I pray, blow the str ongest wind upon me and my entire body.
Especially, blow it upon my eyes.
Wind,
As you are four-headed and four-legged monster,
I'd like to present you a nice pair of
four-legged pants.
And please, hold tne once.^
The four-headed and four-legged monster symbolized the mystical and
mysterious nature of the seasons, which Bikky always loved. He asked the wind to
blow into his eyes so that he could see into himself^ This metaphorical expression
also paralleled the expressions ol the Ainu oral epics, xhe ytikar. A destructive wind
appears in the old stories as a bad god who caused people to suffer but was calmed
by a good god after a dramatic battle.
Bikky's poem also alludes to an Ainu ceremony that seeks to reverse unusu-
ally bad weather. The Yakumo Ainu, lor example, performed a wind ritual when
the east wind blew fiercely in the autumn and salmon would not come up the
rivers. Four young Ainu men were chosen to play the roles of the gods; three men
played the good gods of west, north, and south, and one played the bad god ol
the east. The good gods wore elaborate ceremonial outfits; in contrast, the bad east
81
god had to wear an old and worn-out outfit. At the beginning of the performance,
the bad god splashes the audience with water and throws sand on them, but the
three good gods chase the east god into the sea. He tries to escape, but the good
gods catch him, bring him in front of the audience, and make him apologize to
the audience for his bad behavior.''
The first of Bikky s wind-themed works was Yottsu no Kaze (Four Winds;
Fig. 6.3). He received the commission to do a large sculpture for the opening of
the Outdoor Museum of Contemporary Art in Sapporo in July 1986. His first
drawing was done in December 1985 and on it he scribbled "this drawing is the
first idea for Four Winds (lor the outdoor museum), and so is a memorable one."^
While Bikky often made many drawings for a new theme, he seemed to have a
definite idea lor this project for little changed between his first drawing and his
final work.
In January 1986, lour lour-hundred-year-old Glehn's spruce trees were
brought to Bikky s studio Irom the northernmost part of Hokkaido University's
experimental forest. Before Bikky set about his work, he sat down on the snowy
Fig. 6.3: )oiiiit 11(1 A,/.-,' (I'oui- \X hkIs), 1986.
Fig. 6.4: Bikky performing the kamuy-nomi.
ground and performed a kamuy-nomi for the trees, using an ikupasiiy (a prayer-
stick) and a ceremonial sake cup and saucer. Although he generally performed
such rituals privately when he began new work, this ceremony was photographed
by Katsuaki Kitayama of the Hokkaido Shimbim (Fig. 6.4), one of the first times
Bikky had publicly acknowledged the connection between his modern work and
his Ainu heritage." It seemed to prove his psychological change and his acceptance
of his public Ainu identity.
More so than his totem poles and columns, Four Winds was Bikky s most
ambitious outdoor wooden artwork. As he began the work for the Museum of
Contemporary Art in Sapporo he wrote:
Although this is an outdoor museum, Im trying my luck with
wooden sculptures. Outdoor scidptures are always done in bronze
and stone, but I'm going to submit wooden scidptures Natural
phenomena, the snow and wind, will add to their completeness
/ calculate that it will stand there at least fifty years^
83
In carving the four Glehns spruce trees for this work, Bikky kept the
original shape ot the log, carving out the central portion, each of which faces
one of the four compass directions. He covered the surface of each column with
thousands of rhythmical scale-like chisel marks, and it s almost as if each scale-like
mark represents a new grain for the trees or each breath he took as he carved with
his chisel.'" The wood has the textured quality of living things or cells. When he
was working on Four Winds, Bikky left the following in his private notebook:
/ make use of the trees in nature, grown without touching
human hands, as materials.
Thus, they are lii'ing things. Its quite natural that living
things will atrophy and decay.
I (as an artist) will reconstruct them anew — giving them
a new life with a new form. ' '
For a 1986 exhibition at the Hokkaido Museum of Modern Art, Bikky
submitted an indoor work called Kaze ni Kikit (Listening to the Wind; Fig. 6.5).'"^
There are four abstract cylindrical forms that Bikky carved inside and out. Each
has a small rectangular head-like project and each has the presence of a human
figure although they are all very abstract. Bikky carved the cylindrical forms
Fig. 6.5: Kaze ni Kiku (Listening to the Wind), 1986.
84
according to the contour of the tree, so that they appear to bend, stoop, or tik.
He specified that they could be arranged in any composition; tor example, they
can be arranged to depict Ainu wind mythologies, or as it they are talking to each
other in a group, or so that one figure is being left: out ot the conversation. In
other compositions the cylindrical fiarms appear to be in a stage setting of some
sort, or just stand there, listening to the wind. At the end of 1986 this work was
actually used as a stage installation for a modern dance performance entitled The
Coexistence of Nature and Humans}'' Clearly this piece can be described as an
installation piece, f^owever, because of the rarity ot this type of work in Japan at
the time, it is highly unlikely that Bikky was influenced by the installation work o
other artists. This is a wondertul example ot his unique creativity, blending Ainu
spirituality with the primal forces of nature.
Three years later, in 1989 — invited to submit work to an exhibition ot
contemporary sculptures at the Kanagawa Prefectural Gallery outside Tokyo —
Bikky revisited the "wind" theme with two massive and dynamic works both
named Kaze (Wind).'^ One piece seems to suggest the open mouth of a killer
Fig 6.6: Kdzf (Wiiul), 19«H.
whale, the god of the ocean, rising from the water (Fig 6.6).'^ By carving away
wood midway on the right side, a mouth is formed using the natural contour
of the wood. Examining the piece reveals several U-shape metal joints holding
together some of the pieces of wood, but the overall impression is organic. In this
sense it resembles his 1980 work Tongue of God. Bikky often stated that to "recon-
struct' natural wood was to give it a new life and personality; in other words, that
Bikky, as a part ol nature, gave a new dimension of life to his works.
Unlike Tongue of God, which is meticulously finished, Bikky 's chisel marks
on one of the two Kaze works are much rougher and use several carving tech-
niques. For instance, he gouged many deep, rough, and sharp incision marks in
the upper portion ot the piece, carved against the grain of the wood, creating an
almost visceral texture. Before going to Canada and being exposed to the distinc-
tive linear patterns of the adze marks on totem poles, Bikky's chisel marks were
random and unintentional, the end result of shaping wood with a tool. After his
return to Otoineppu, however, Bikky was acutely aware of his carving technique.
He found that by controlling the way he removed wood with the chisel, he could
create different moods and attitudes such as found in these two Wind pieces.
The second work named Wind (Fig. 6.7) suggests the dramatic life and
Fig. 6.7: U^/W, 1988.
death struggles found in nature. Made from two lumps of Japanese oak, it
the same primordial quality as the first work, but the tension is almost tani
Most of the surface is incised with thousands of chisel marks but offset by
smooth areas made by a saw. Bikky not only
intentionally exposed some portions of the
natural grain of the wood through judicious
use of newly cut areas, but also left older cut
areas, darkened and weathered through the
years, as contrast. The cracks, gaps, knots, and
stains of the grain of the wood also become an
integral part of the piece.
For the Kanagawa exhibition Bikky
also created a marvelously simple and abstract
sculpture entitled Kaze no Oh to Oh-hi (King
and Queen of Wind; Fig. 6.8).'^' The 1.73-
meter-tall column (more than five and one-
half feet), separated to form two heads, has an
integrated base that also serves as a single neck
and shoulders for the royal couple. The slight
flair at the top of both the King and Queen
add a positive space to the harmoniously bal-
anced composition. It is carved smoothly on
the outside surfaces and on the concave areas
where the heads join. Again, we see rough and
smooth surfaces used to create an effect — this
time calm and regal.
has
^ible.
several
Fig. 6.8: Kdze no Oil to Oh-lii (Kin^ and Queen of
Wind), 1988.
87
The North
Another theme that Bikky developed over the final years of his life were
works that reflected his "northern" consciousness, although it was an idea that
wove its way through most of his work throughout his life. It took explicit form in
a number of pieces, including his 1987 Kita no Oh to Oh-hi (Northern King and
Queen; Fig. 6.9).'
The Northern King and Qiieen are a pair of upright sculptures, each
consisting of three stacked spheres
with a base at the bottom, a major
form that he had used since the Toh
series of 1979, just after he moved
to Otoineppu. The two sculptures
provide a strong symbolic contrast
between the attributes of female and
male, which though abstract is also
biomorphic and even humanoid.
The work symbolizes the abstract
sexuality between men and women
that Bikky pursued in his "Tentacle"
theme.
His continuing theme of
"northerness" led to the abstract
and strikingly simplified sculpture
entitled Kita no Dobutsu (Northern
Animals) in 1987 (Fig. 6.10). The
two abstract organic shapes are
elevated on short, square pedestals
attached and placed side by side
on a long rectangular board. These
organic C-shaped pieces are some-
what similar to the Northeryi King
and Queen but are placed so that
they create a twisted and tightly con-
trolled, complex spatial movement
Fig 6.9: Kitix 110 Oh to Oh-hi (Northern King and Queen), 1987.
88
in contrast to the somewhat serene, relaxed feehng of the "Northern King and
Queen."
Bikky used Japanese oak, which gives a whiteness to the pieces that is
reminiscent of a newborn smooth-skinned animal looking out at the world for
the first time. In contrast, the base of the rectangular board has the finely carved
chisel-marks that is found on much ot his work since moving to Otoineppu. This
creates a subtle but definite contrast between the animals, and it emphasizes the
smoothness of the organic shapes. This piece symbolizes the drama of life young
animals face in the northern kingdom that Bikky loved so much.
Fig. 6.10: Kita no Dobutsu (Northern Animals), 1987.
Personal Themes
Although much of the work that Bikky would create during the last years
of his life reflected his experience in Canada, he also continued to purstie ideas
that had occupied him closely throughout his career. One work, Bmisiii-rei A.B
(Watershed A.B, Fig. 6.1 1), returns to Bikky's love of puns and ambiguous word
meanings."^ At first viewing, these two wooden figures appear to be deer-like ani-
mals. The right-angled, streamlined shapes are carved from one piece of wood wit
the legs attached separately. The divided front legs seem to be symbolic of moun-
tains and valleys that make up
a hydrological watershed, but
the connection between the
forms of the pieces and the title
is problematic, perhaps a meta-
phoric expression of nature and
natural phenomena commonly
found in the yukar, the Ainu
oral epics. Also deceptive is the
work's apparent connection
to Shinto religious art. Deer
mandalas are often prominent
in the art depicting the Kasuga
cult.' ' However, Makoto
Kawakami, Bikky's close friend
in Otoineppu, disclosed that
Bikky said that Watershed A.B
are female and male genitalia,
ingeniously disguised by title
and the carved composition.""
Armed with this knowledge, it's
easy to identify the erect penis
and the labia of the female
genitalia — Bikky 's most overtly
sexual work, despite the
disguise.
At the beginning of 1987 Bikky started a new series entitled Gozen Sanji
no Gangii (Toys at 3:00 A.M.; Fig. 6.12). As the title suggests, the series was
created early in the morning, close to daybreak, when Bikky did most of his work.
He described his work routine:
/ try to devote myself from 11 p.m. to 3:30 a.m. to shaping my
ideas for my work. I always stop sketching at 3:30 a.m. and begin
carving. Because that is the time when the express train Rishiri passed
near my studio, the sound of the train became a signal for me to begin
carving. I have worked by this routine for ten years. ~^
Fig. 6.11: /i»;M«/-n7 /l.i?(W.uershed A.B), 1985.
90
Fig. 6.12: Gozen Sanji no Gangu (Toys at 3:00 A.M).
Although Bikky loved sociaHzing with people, he wanted to have complete
privacy for his artistic activity and chose the late night when nobody wotild disturb
him so that he could, as he described it, "confront himself" His studio, open to
the weather on one side, had only one small heater and in the winter the tempera-
ture in the studio was often well below zero degrees Farenheit — and he often lost
feeling in his hands. Pieces of ice and frozen wood chips would seem to explode
every time he drove the axe into the wood.
Just as Bikky's father had confronted the severe winter nights in snow caves
with only the clothes he was wearing when he was out hunting, so too would
Bikky challenge his art and himself against the snow and cold. Bikky's artistic
activity seemed to be at its best with self-imposed adversity. He would get himself
cornered in order to challenge himself physically and psychologically.
The many works in his new "Toys at 3:00 A.M." series were done in small
scale, approximately thirty centimeters (eleven or twelve inches). As the title of
"toys" suggests, and like his early "Tentacle" series, the works were small enough
that people could pick them up and play with them. From the dates of some of
his toy drawings, we know that the idea for this series was already formed by the
winter of 1986. Although most of Bikkys work had become dramatically larger
after his exposure to the totem poles and house posts of the Indians of Canada's
Northwest Coast, he had enjoyed working on smaller pieces since creating the
Bikky monyo finger ring patterns in his youth.
"Toys at 3:00 A.M." celebrated the primordial spirit-world creatures that
shared the nights with Bikky. We know that Bikky believed he was releasing and/
or making new life forms from the kamuy (gods) of the wood. His observations of
the animals carved in the totem poles of the indigenous people of the Northwest
Coast gave him the insights and the knowledge to know that he must look deeper
within himself to create wonderftd new animals. These included an abstract
scorpion-like insect with multiple wings and a long articulated tail and others that
look like butterflies with lour wings. All the insect-like creations have articulated
segments such as long, slender, flexible feelers, tails, and antennae, which are
connected with hinged wooden joints so that they can move freely.
This kind of detailed and delicate workmanship is technically similar to
a variety of creatures such as fish and other sea world animals he created when
he was working at the Kitanihon Folkcraft Company in Sapporo in 1 960s and
1970s. These mysterious insect-like creatures appeared in his bizarre bookylo/
Sakyii nite (In the Blue Sand Dune) published in 1976, a collection of prose and
poems inspired by his dreams from 1964 to 1973. In the book various kinds of
very pectdiar and surrealistic creatures appear, such as "a moth with three wings
like the propeller of a fishing boat." "Toys at 3:00 A.M." appear to be the materi-
alized images of the surrealistic creatures found in his dreams and "reconstructed"
life forms from the land of the kamuy. While most of his large works were done
leaving rough or small rhythmical chisel marks on the surface, the "Toys at 3:00
A.M." were finished with a polished, smooth surface that illustrates the mysterious
shininess that almost all new life exhibits.
Fig. 6.13: Bill Reidls tr.iiiskirmation ptnd.mt with detjchabic "mask, 1982.
When he held the "Toys at 3:00 A.M." exhibition in the Aoki gallery in
Tokyo, Martine Reid, Bill Reid's wife, came Irom Canada to see his show. Martine
was surprised at the small scale of Bikky's work, becatise she was only familiar with
the larger he had created in Canada. She said that Bikky's "Toys at 3:00 A.M."
reminded her of a pendant of a dogfish transforming into a woman carved by Bill
Reid (Fig. 6.13) when Bikky was in Canada. Based on her suggestion, it's possible
to conjecture that Bikky had been inspired by the mystic transformation qtiality ol
the pendant and the many transformation masks of the Northwest Coast when he
created "Toys at 3:00 A.M."''
Painting, Sketclnes, Wooclblocl< Prints, Calligraplny
Even as he created some of his most impressive monumental sculpture,
Bikky continued to paint and pursue work in other media. In 1987 he held two
exhibitions, both called "Sculpture-Painting," made up solely of his paintings,
one at the Park Hotel in Sapporo and the other at a gallery in Yokohama. He had
begun his career as a painter and constantly sketched, even when talking or drink-
ing with his friends, and created thousands of drawings and paintings during his
lifetime. However, after he switched the main focus of his media from two-dimen-
sional paintings to three-dimensional sculptures in the 1960s, many of his sketches
Fig. 6.14: Kitii no Oh to Oh-hi (Northern King and Queen), 1987.
Fig. 6.15: DoNo.l (Move No.l), 1987.
captured or solved the spatial relationships that he would transfer to his sculptures.
He told an interviewer:
/ always make sketches. I make a couple hundred of sketches in
order to get the exact image of what I want fi'om the sculpture. I think
making sketches is definitely needed in order to acquire the "lines" of
my thoughts, to assure myself in my work.'^
Bikky often experimented with techniques, such as using his fingers to
put the pigments directly on paper — a method he called "sculpture-painting."
Sometimes he coated the picture plane with different pigments and scratched it
with a wooden stick or a fork to get the image he was looking for. Using various
kinds of lines and materials heightened his energy on the canvas.
He created two abstract paintings using crayons and watercolors on paper
named Kitn no Oh to Oh-hi (Northern King and Queen) in 1987 (Fig. 6.14),
which are stylized abstractions of the biomorphic forms in his sculpture of the
same name."'' The monochromatic "Northern King and Queen" paintings have
a sculptural quality to them, with stratified lines on a gray background creating a
sctdptural effect. Only the queen is painted with red accents. The color contrasts
and the movements of lines create a unique sense of depth.
Not all of his sketches were sculpture-related. For example, in 1986 he
made a pencil drawing entitled Do No.l (Move No.l) on a two-meter (six foot)
long roll of Japanese paper (Fig. 6. 15).'^ These kinds of pencil drawings, of which
there are several, were dashed off for his own pleasure, not lor the pursuit of images
for his sculpture. The unfolding drawing begins with a female body that quickly
takes on a surrealistic quality as the roll unfolds — her sensual limbs stretch and
extend in a continuous line only to have another limb abruptly foreshortened. The
short and long curvilinear contours ol the female body create rhythmical move-
95
Fig. 6.16: Tokyo no Hi (Night Lights ofToiiyo), 1988.
ments like a musical score. The recognizable body parts are quickly transformed
into imaginary biomorphic forms and back to a normally proportioned woman at
the end ot his drawing. While the entire drawing has a wonderfully playful quality
to it, his intention seemed to not only express his ideas about female sexuality, but
also to explore the mysticism found in the feminine side of life itself While there
is no doubt that women were physically exciting to Bikky, he was perhaps even
more intrigued by the "metaphysical" nature of women.
Bikky created another roll drawing in honor of Martine Reid s visit to
Tokyo. In a taxi to her hotel, Bikky made a quick sketch of the night scenes of
Tokyo using a pencil on a long roll (3.7 meters, more than twelve feet) of Japanese
paper. He called the work Tokyo no Hi (Night Lights of Tokyo; Fig. 6.16). Bikky
caught the rhythm and energy of nighttime Tokyo; streets flooded with the reflec-
tion of traffic lights, the hypnotic blur from thousands of neon lights, the thick,
jostling crowds and speeding cars were all turned into "living things ' in Bikky's
drawing. These biomorphic forms are like nocturnal monsters breathing in the
cosmopolitan night life of Tokyo: running, dancing, crying, and shouting, all
headed toward the nonstop night feast.
Bikky also enjoyed creating calligraphy, and he included examples in the
Gensho-ten (Origin of the Begihning) exhibition at the Muto gallery in Tokyo in
1988, a showing organized by Bikky
and five professional artists who were
also nonprofessional calligraphers
who enjoyed the challenge of creating
various styles of calligraphy without
any restrictions. Bikky s work was
dramatic and innovative, including a
five-meter (sixteen foot) long sheet of
Japanese paper on which he wrote the
six exhibitors' names with Japanese
characters, cut them into pieces, and
scattered them at random.
Bikky continued his political
involvement as an Ainu and environ-
mental activist, donating his wood-
block prints to calendars in 1987 and
1988 to raise funds lor a citizen action
group fighting against the development
of a nuclear waste disposal facility near
his studio. Bikky came out strongly
for the causes he believed in: "Because
I'm part of the Ainu race, I can't stand
the environmental destruction [by the
Japanese government and the Japanese timber industry]."'''
The 1987 calendar Shiki no Kao (Faces ol Four Seasons), included Bikky 's
visionary image of four seasons expressed with abstract designs in black and white
(Fig. 6.17). Some have strong red accents to express his anger and criticism against
the environmental destruction in Hol<Lkaido. In December 1987 he produced
another woodblock calendar Pirika Moshir (the Beautiful Land, in Ainu). The
calendar consisted of two pages, each with a different woodblock print: Ajiiniah
Running Toward the Green and Animals Running Among the Trees.
In 1987 Bikky volunteered as chairman and organizer for the Second
National Ainu Conference, held in March. Fourteen years had passed since the last
conference in 1973, which Bikky had also chaired, and in the intervening fourteen
years, Ainu concerns had broadened and now included international indigenous
Fig. 6.17: Sliiki no Kao (Faces of Four Seasons), 1987.
and Ainu legislation issues. Inflaming passions at the time was the insensitive
remark made by the Prime Minister Nakasone that the nation's Ainu minority
population didn't really exist in Japan."'' It prompted a great deal of heated, angry
discussion among the Ainu. A two-day schedule was organized and more than
four-hundred participants were actively involved in the discussion.
Illness
In spring 1988 Bikky, hard at work on artwork for exhibitions and com-
missioned pieces, was forced to take time off for surgery to relieve pain from
thrombosis in one leg — a condition he suffered from since moving to Otoineppu
that had now grown unbearable. He underwent various other medical tests at the
time and came out with a clean bill of health.
In late summer, however, Bikky began feeling a sharp pain in his back. He
went to the Asahikawa University Hospital to get an examination, but no disease
was lound. While he felt relieved that nothing of concern was found, the pain in
the back went unabated. Unfortunately, the doctors missed a deadly cancer. To
ease the pain, Bikky began going to see an acupimcturist in Otoineppu village
every day.
The intensity of his back pain increased day by day. He could no longer
walk normally and soon he needed the aid of a cane. Both Bikky and his friends
thought the pain was an after-effect of the operation he had had in spring. Before
long, his condition began to impinge on his ability to create his work. This led to
extreme trustration because he wanted to create something special for an upcom-
ing exhibition at the Kanagawa Prefectural Gallery in January 1989, just a few
months away. The honor ot exhibiting in this gallery carried with it the pressure
to produce the best work possible. Bikky had exhibited his work at the Kanagawa
gallery in 1985 and had been impressed with the gallery's large open space, perfect
for his large-scale work, and it challenged him to create even more monumental
works.
Creativity unchecked despite his great pain, Bikky began to rely more and
more on the help of his assistants, guiding them through the mechanical tech-
niques needed to bring his vision alive. At the end of autumn Bikky's physical con-
dition became much worse, and in late October his doctor informed Bikky's wife
that he had been diagnosed as being in the terminal stages of cancer. His family
and friends, however, decided not to tell him that he had little chance of surviving
the disease, as is often the case in families in Japan. The doctor prescribed a treat-
ment of complete rest at the hospital and an intravenous drug therapy was begun.
Even though Bikky was more or less confined to his hospital bed, he devoted
himself intensely to the pursuit ot his creations; for example, when his right arm
and hand were swollen, he fixed the drawing pencil in his fingers with cellophane
tape and made sketches on his stomach. ' ' He also painted using a paint brush
in his mouth. His friends recalled Bikky 's frustration at that time. Bikky com-
plained, "I can't work during the daytime because of visitors. I wake up in the night
to work, but my wife is tired and is sleeping and I can't move very well by myself
I simply can't do it."" But, he did, slowly, painfully, continue to work and the few
times when he couldn't, he felt deeply humiliated at his unsuccessful attempts.
Fig. 6.18: K.ikusei A.C (Avivlim A.C), 1988.
Final Works and Exhibitions
For the Ikki-tasl.wku (A Tree with Many Touches) exhibition held in
Tokyo's Inax Gallery in March 1988, Bikky submitted Kakiisei A.C (Atavism A.C;
Fig. 6.18),'" influenced, as noted by the highly respected art critic Wadao Takeoka,
by the drums of Canada's Northwest Coast \n(Xv^L\is.^^ Atavism was originally a set
of three pieces, but one "drum" split in half during the tenth annual "Talk-about-
Trees Exhibition " and it now consists of two drum-like pieces. ' ' Bikky had created a
much more complex sculpture with a similar title called Animal-Atavism in 1963,
but Atavism A. C is more minimal and the two works bear few stylistic similari-
ties. Both titles, however, show the depth of Bikky 's ideas about the relationship
between animal spirits and humans and connections to ancestral conditions,
100
perhaps one symbolic example of Bikky's acceptance of indigenous art as part of
his psyche. Bikky's use of light-colored katsura {Cercidiphylliim japonicum Sieb. et
Zucc.) wood suggests the cream-colored rawhide used for drum skins: The rear
lighting used on this work for an exhibition at the Hokkaido Asahikawa Museum
of Art in 1 993 highlighted geometric forms on the drums and caused them to
glow like burning candles — or like the glow of the inaiv in the fire pit in the
home — creating a sacred atmosphere.
In the summer and fall of 1988, Bikky planned work for a number of
exhibits. In the early summer Bikky and his friends organized the tenth 'Talk-
about-Trees Exhibition," which had been taking place since Bikky first founded it
in 1979 in the village of Otoineppu. Even though he was plagued by increasing
pain, Bikky felt a deep responsibility that the exhibition be a success. The number
of participating artists, both professional and amateur, increased year by year. Not
only was the exhibit gaining in popularity, it was becoming an important exhibit
for professional artists to show their work. '^ Later in the summer, the Sunazawa
Bikky Exhibition was held at Park Hotel in Sapporo. The works of "Toys at 3:
00 A.M." and some of his paintings were displayed. From August 24 to October
2 Bikky participated in the Forth North Sculpture Exhibition at the Sapporo
Sculptural Museum. Above all, Bikky dedicated himself to planning the work for
the Contemporary Artists Series at the Kanagawa Prefectural Gallery to be held
from January 21 to February 5, 1989.
Final Illness
After extensive examinations in the middle of November 1988, Bikky's
doctor finally diagnosed his disease as colon cancer that had metastasized. The
doctor told his family that Bikky would live only a few more months at best, but it
was probable that he would die before the end of the year. Even after this diagnosis
Bikky's family didn't tell him of his true condition, and there are no indications
that he knew how ill he was.''' He often begged his friends to ask the doctors when
he would be able to leave the Asahikawa University Hospital so that he could
return to Otoineppu to work.'^
While he struggled against the unendurable pain in his back, he was much
more worried about his incomplete works for the exhibition at the Kanagawa
Prefectural Gallery than he was for his own physical condition. Undatmted by his
101
pain but acknowledging that he needed to stay in the hospital to cure himself, he
developed a plan to finish his work. When looking from the window of his room
on the fourth floor, he noticed an empty plot of land at the corner of the hospital
site. He proposed to his friends to bring the incomplete work to the nearby empty
site so he could give instructions electronically to his assistants while he tracked
the progress looking through binoculars. Because he was so serious, one of his
friends actually negotiated for the loan of the site from the land owner.
The exhibition was now only six weeks away. He became desperate and
frustrated and continually begged his doctor to release him from the hospital
for a couple days so he could finish his work for the exhibition. The doctor had
been impressed by his devotion to his art and his constant sketching and painting
since he entered the hospital. She also found out about Bikky's plan to bring his
incomplete works to the hospital site, and was very influenced and touched by his
determination to finish his work. Finally, on December 1 1, 1988, she gave him
permission to go home for two days. He was sent back in an ambulance with a
nurse in attendance.
The people of Otoineppu knew of his illness and were concerned about
Bikky; they decided to help him as much as they possibly could, placing his larger
works outside near the window of his studio, where he could easily see them. They
wanted everything to be ready for him to go to work. After a six-hour drive he
arrived at his home, and the people welcomed his return. He was so happy that he
got out of the ambulance by himself He so intensely missed the natural environ-
ment surrounding his studio that he stood by himself, looked around and said,
"Osashima is such a wonderful place!"
As soon as he saw his work, he guided his assistants to complete his work.
Assisting Bikky's apprentices, Michio Takagi and Tomoko Noguchi, were Bikky's
younger brother Kazuo Sunazawa and Bikky's childhood friend Takeki Fujito, both
respected Ainu artists, and several village government officials, including Makoto
Kawakami who supplied Bikky with trees for several years, often at no cost.
Knowing his freedom would only last two days, Bikky drove himself intensely,
pushing and pulling the IV stand while he received the intravenous drugs and a
blood transfusion (Fig. 6.f9). He worked madly for two days, and in the evening,
when he wasn't directing his friends, he drew and painted.
One of the works that he worked on and completed during this frantic
time was titled Nitnekamuy (Evil or Trickster God; see Fig. A. 1). Bikky had started
Fig. 6.19: Bikky and his friends at home.
this piece earlier that year but had been interrupted by the need to finish other
work.'' The name of the work is derived from the legendary god of evil who lived
around the Asahikawa region, known to play tricks on the Ainu people. No one
knows why Bikky had the Ainu god in mind for his last work, but Hokkaido
Museum of Modern Art curator T. Echizen speculated that because Bikky knew
he was going to submit this work to the exhibition at the Hokkaido Asahikawa
Museum of Art, he wanted an Ainu name relevant to the Asahikawa area."*" It's
possible that Bikky also felt a sense that something malevolent was affecting his
fate — Bikky could have chosen any number of Ainu names h-om the region, but
he choose the evil trickster god, perhaps believing that Nitiiekamiiy was casting an
evil spell on him.
At the end of the second day of Bikky 's furlough from the hospital, several
dozen of his friends held a party to celebrate the tenth anniversary of Bikky start-
ing work in his studio Sanmore. Although he must have been tired, he stood
rigidly at attention with the intravenous drugs dripping into his body, and made
a speech in front of them. "I thank you lor your support. I'm glad I've spent the
103
last ten years creating my artistic work in Osashima. But now I'm thinking about
how I'm going to spend the next ten years. I'm going to show you my best art and
I look forward to the work."^' His short visit ended the next day and on December
13 he went back to the hospital.
Though Bikky attended the exhibition opening at the Kanagawa Gallery
on January 21, the end was clearly near. When he returned to the hospital, many
people came to say their goodbyes over the next few days. Bikky suffered through
the pain; the more pain he felt, the harder he tried to draw something in his
sketchbook, hoping to take his mind off the pain. Then on January 25th, Bikky
slowly began to loose consciousness after 4 P.M., repeatedly talking in his sleep,
saying, "I will go back to Otoineppu and do more work,"'*' and grasping his pen-
cil. Around 9 P.M., he awoke to write his last words, "My disease is completely
cured. "^"^ Shortly thereafter, at 9:15 P.M., he died. It was a fitting and dramatic
death for the Northern King — a modern abstract sculptor, an Ainu artist. Bikky
was fifty-seven years young.
During the Kanagawa exhibition, several of Bikky 's sculptures sprouted
wild mushrooms. How pleased he would have been to know that nature was
finishing his work.
End Notes
1. Gra C/w/; (October, 1988:10).
2. Asahi Shiiiihiin {Ui.y M), 1984).
3. M. Kinetsuka (1990b)
4. Poem written in Autumn 1988.
5. When Bikky needed time tor introspection, he would seek solitude in the lorest. He needed the challenges
of nature, the wind and rain, to obtain the spiritual message waiting for him. This is reminiscent of the
vision quest experienced by Native Americans.
6. Inukai (1970:621-2).
7. R. Sunazawa (1990:165).
8. Fukao and Kitayama (1986).
9. Hariu et al. (1989:101); Bikky's estimate tor the lite of four Winds was optimistic. Installed in 1986, one
pole was already badly decayed by 2002. The taster-than-expected decay forced the museum to make a
difficult decision. If the pole was to be repaired successfully, it must be done immediately. There were
several issues, if the pole was left to decay naturally, the museum would loose one of its most popular out-
door sculptures; on the other hand, there was Bikky's strong desire that nature finish his work. Because the
work had taken on an almost mythic importance with art lovers, museum officials took the unusual step
to have a public forum to help decide the future of the poles. Because all works in the outdoor musetnn
were public art, museum officials thought the public should have their opinions heard.
On June 24, 2001, as part ot the Kiki Exhibition, a fifteen-year memorial retrospective of Bikky' work,
invited art critics, museum curators, artists, conservators, and the public gathered at the sculpture. While
the poles were roped off to keep the crowd back, the grass growing at the top of two ot the poles, ancf
the precarious condition brought on by the deep penetration of the decay at the base of one pole, was
clearly visible to the crowd. After much discussion with conflicting views, at the end ot the afternoon it
was decided that Bikky's wish for his work was to be honored. It was an emotional day for Bikky's sup-
porters, and a precedent setting day tor the museum commtmity. To invite the public to voice their opin-
ion, allowing them to in effect dictate the future of an extremely valuable work of art, is most unusual
{Hokkaido Slmnbun, June 25 & July 5, 2001; Lure [2001:4-10]).
10. Bikky, while admiring the adze work of Bill Reid and other Northwest Coast Native American artists,
was never able to reconcile himself to use the adze as a "finishing" tool. The three large adzes I found in
Bikky's studio were used to "rough out " designs. However the adze work he saw in Canada prompted him
to use the very small, tightly controlled chisel marks found on his post-Canada work. The pre-Canada
chisel use was more in line with a random chisel "design."
11. Hariu et al. (1989:100).
12. It was originally entitled Yottsu no Kazc B (Four Winds B) ( The Hokkat Tunes, August 27, 1986).
13. Hokkaido Shinibiai (November 27, 1986).
14. These two pieces of work were untitled in the exhibition of Contemporary Artists' Series '89 in the
Kawagawa Prefectural Gallery from January 21 to February 5 in 1989 (The exhibition catalogue of
Contemporary Artists' Series '89). Both works were titled Wind after his death (Hariu et al. 1989). While
one of his major themes was "wind" after his retiu n from Canada, I couldn't find who named them. This
is just one of many name changes for Bikky's work.
15. The killer whale or rep-un-kamuy, is a powerful god to the Ainu. Many Ainu, from both the seashore
area, and the forested moimtains, use an abstract form of the killer whale as their itokpa, or the patrilineal
ancestral sign.
16. In the exhibition Tentacle-Sunazawa Bikky (April 16-May 15, 1994) at the Hokkaido Museum ol
Modern Art in Sapporo, and in an interview with Bikky for the Kitano Gunzo (The Northern (iroup)
television show on Sapporo TV during the creation ot the piece (aired November 13, 1988), this piece
was titled The King and Queen ofWind. However, in the exhibition of Conleinporary Artists' Series '89
at the Kanagawa Prefectural Gallery from January 21 to February 5 in 1989, it was titled Kitano Gunzo
(Northern Group). I don't know il this title is a misprint in the catalogue, or it someone changed the title
later.
17. Although this work was completed in 1 987, he submitted it for Modern Art Correspondence Exhibition in
1988 (October 15-November 1) in Sapporo.
18. Bikky was constantly playing with words. The dictionary meaning of the kanji (Chinese character) he
used, bunsnirei, means both "watershed" and "divide." His memorial book, Sunazawa Bikky Art Works
(edited by Hariu et al. 1989), titled these works as Watershed A. B, and the catalogue from his latest exhibi-
tion (April 16-May IS, 1994) at Hokkaido Museum of Modern Art, titled the works as Divide A. B. The
changing of titles is problematic tor the art historian because ot the contusion it creates.
19. While there are minor similarities between the Ainu religion and Shintoism in the general area of a respect
and fear for nature, the reverence of the natural environment was a belief common among many prehis-
toric tribal people. However, these similarities are superticial. Shintoism has at its base human pantheons,
animal deities, animal mandalas, such as the deer mandalas mentioned above, and important human made
shrines complexes. They also believe war heroes are the embodiment of god. The Ainu have none of these
precepts. Shigeru Kayano, an important Ainu cultural leader from the Nibutani region, strongly rejects
any connection with Shintoism. The Ainu belief system is based on the sole concept of maintaining a har-
mony with nature.
20. Interview (May 16, 1995).
21. Creo Chib (October 1988:12).
22. Interview (December 9, 1993).
23. Echizen (1988:6).
24. This painting was originally titled Kitn no Oh-hi no Mai (Dance of the Northern Queen) in his memorial
book, Sunazawa Bikky Art Works (Hariu et al. 1989).
25. The date ot painting was written by Bikky in 1986 at the end of drawing with his signature, but the
museum catalog, Ventacle-Simazawa Bikky, cited the date, 1987.
26. Hokkaido Shimbnn (November 20, 1986).
27. Former Prime Minister Nakasone made a comment publicly that "the Ainu people have already inter-
mingled with the Japanese people as tar as I know," on 2 1 October, 1 986 ( The Globe and Mail, October
23, 1986).
28. The other two artists who were part of the exhibition with Bikky at the Kanagawa Prefectural Gallery,
were contemporary painter, Norio Ueno (b. 1932), and contemporary printmaker, Fumiaki Fukida (b.
1926).
29. Yazaki (1989a:53).
30. Fujiwara (1989:18).
31. Ibid.
32. There is some discrepancy in the cited alphabetized names of the drums. The literature calls the two
remaining drum "A.C."
33. W.Takeoka (1988).
34. Bikky s very close friend from Otoineppu, Makoto Kawakami, was standing close to the Atavism set
at the 10th Annual "Talk-About-Trees Exhibition" when suddenly, a child accidentally knocked over a
drum which hit the floor with a loud cracking noise, splitting the drum in halt (interview with Makoto
Kawakami, April 4, 1994). He immediately felt uncomfortable, that something was wrong, a portent of
something horribly wrong for the future. Kawakami called Bikky at home to tell him of the accident. At
first Bikky laughed, not at all upset. He knew that this t)'pe of accident was inevitable if he wanted people
to interact with his art. However, he became quiet, and after a few moments, stated that "perhaps, this
isn't a good sign" (telephone interview with Makoto Kawakami, March 18, 1995). Interestingly, Katsumi
Yazaki, his very good friend from Sapporo, had a similar experience around the same time. Bikky had
carved a beautiful chair that, depending on the viewing angle, would depict a woman's body, not a chair.
One day the chair suddenly split in halt with a loud sound. He too immediately felt uncomfortable, with
a shock going through his body, and breaking out in a heavy, cold sweat (Yazaki 1989b:8). In less than a
month of" these two incidents, Bikky would complain of terrible pain in his back. While not diagnosed at
the time, his cancer was already claiming his body (interview with Makoto Kawakami, April 4, 1994).
35. In 1979 Bikky told his closest friend in Otoineppu, Makoto Kawakami, that his goal was to develop
"The Talk-About-Trees Exhibition" to become a showcase for new modern sculpture, and that people
who were interested in modern art would come to the country. Bikky's dream had become a fact until,
unfortunately, his death. His energetic dynamism was the core of the exhibit. Without the core, the exhibit,
and the dream, ended.
36. Telling him about his true condition was a big discussion with his family and his friends. It was happening
so fast that everybody seemed to be contused and didn't know how to deal with it. However, they eventu-
ally made up their mind to tell Bikky about his disease at the end ot November or at the beginning of
December. However, the doctor stopped them this time and said that Bikky didn't have any more time
(Fujiwara 1989:17). They thought Bikky would die any day.
37. Fujiwara (1989:18).
38. Igarashi (1989:2).
39. Echizen (1992:4).
40. Nitnekamny was one of the works he submitted to the exhibition, Shiki o Egaku-Gendai no Zokei-ten
(Depicting Four Seasons-Wooden Beauty). Modern Sculpture at the Hokkaido Asahikawa Museimi of Art
from December 18, 1988 to February 19, 1989.
41. Kawakami (1989:25).
42. Fujiwara (1989:18).
43. Yazaki (1989b:53).
Chapter 7
Bikky's Legacy
Bikky Sunazawa was one of the most unique contemporary artists to
begin work in Japan after World War II. His fierce pride, his intense disHke oi the
centuries of discrimination by the Japanese toward the Ainu, his parents' leader-
ship role in the fight for Ainu rights, and his traditional Ainu upbringing during
his formative years all shaped his persona and the way he used his artistic talent.
Blended with this was his exposure as a young man to the exciting avant-garde art
world of 1950s Tokyo, during which time he absorbed influences from the artists
and ideas that surrounded him.
Although proud of his heritage, Bikky had internalized the insults he had
received from his Japanese schoolmates and struggled with the feeling that the
Ainu were inferior. He fought against the barriers that locked a male Ainu artist
into a life of being a sculptor of wood with only two artistic expressions, traditional
art and the very narrow field of Ainu tourist art. Neither option was acceptable to
Bikky. Mitsuko Arita, a confidant of Bikky during the mid-1950s, said:
Bikky had a strong negative complex about being an Ainu, but he
studied hard to improve himself. He often said that he would be the
last pure-blooded Ainu, and even though he had his complex, he was
very proud of being Ainu. However, he didn't want to be an "Ainu
bear carver, " he wanted to show that the Ainu can do more. While he
tried very hard to break the stereotyped image of the Ainu, he tried
just as hard to live as an Ainu. It was very difficult for him. '
Bikky's upbringing was unlike that of most Ainu or Japanese children.
For a boy to learn girls' work from his mother was very radical. Gender roles were
inflexible throughout Asia during Bikky's youth, and clearly, garment making was
women's work. The training imbued the complex Ainu designs into Bikky's sub-
conscious, however, providing the opportunity to make the designs work for him.
Bikky's early contribution to Ainu art — jewelry with Ainu designs — was
due in large part to his strong aversion to carving small, simply crafted bears.
Bikky's Ainu jewelry was extremely successful and quickly copied throughout Ainu
country. The jewelry brought an avenue of artistic freedom to Ainu artists, a new
and important source of income, and pride, for now the Ainu artist could create
something besides the stereotypical bear. Even today you will find Ainu jewelry
with "Bikky patterns" in every store that sells Ainu tourist art (Fig. 7.1).
Women were crucial in shaping Bikky's career, especially his mother's guid-
ance, and his first wife's connection to the Tokyo avant-garde art world. Because he
was very charismatic, Bikky also formed several, very different, circles of friends,
many of whose ideas and knowledge affected his work. Bikky's art was initially
influenced by a few abstract sculptors such as Ossip Zadkine and Shigeru Ueki,
but for the most part Bikky tollowed his own star, and he always transformed
these influences into his own very unique images and themes.
Although he had little formal education, Bikky had a hunger for knowl-
edge and worked hard to absorb all that the intellectuals in the group could offer
him. The association with and acceptance by writers such as Tatsuhiko Shibuzawa
helped Bikky validate himself as a person and as an artist."^ Shibuzawa also awak-
ened Bikky's latent talent and love for words. Throughout the remainder of his
life, Bikky played with Ainu, Japanese, and English words in his titles for his
works and in his calligraphy.
Bikky was also influenced by others such as dancer Tatsumi Hijikata. Bikky
was very impressed with Hijikata's expressions of sensuality and rarely missed any
of his performances. ^ It's probable that the forms inspired by the dancers' bending
and twisting bodies emerged later as the surrealistic morphing sculptures found in
the 'Animal" series and the ''Tentacle (maze)" series. It was the shared interest in
erotica and surrealism that bonded Bikky, Shibuzawa, and Hijikata.
Bikky made an important mark on Ainu life with his civil rights work
while he lived in Sapporo during the 1970s. The Ainu liberation movement's
successes were few and small at the time, but they paved the way for important
concessions by the Japanese government. Today the Ainu speak of the activism of
the 1970s just as Americans and Europeans talk of the civil rights successes of the
1 960s. Political advancement of a minority group is always painfully slow, but the
forward movement through the ebb and flow of time is caused by the passion of
individuals such as Bikky. There are Ainu that remember Bikky more for his work
as an Ainu activist than for his art.
While Bikky lived in Sapporo he also began to explore the monumental
totem pole as an art torm, which expanded the scope for other Ainu artists.
Traditional Ainu art consisted of small objects such as the inaw, ikupasny, bowls,
platters, sword and knife scabbards, and other objects of similar size. While the
Ainu made a great many smaller dugout canoes, and large sailing ocean canoes,
with very lew exceptions there is no evidence that they were normally "decorated,"
with the exception of the placement of an iiiaiv in the bow ol the canoe.'* Bikky's
totem pole period, which culminated in 1983, opened a new era of large work
lor Ainu artists. Today there are many Ainu totem poles, such as those carved
in Burnaby, British Columbia, 1990, by Ainu sculptors Nuburi Toko and his
son Shusei Toko (Fig. 7.2).^ The work of other Ainu carvers can also be found
throughout Hokkaido, all directly attributed to Bikky's first poles.*'
Bikky's move to Otoineppu in 1978 brought dramatic change. He now
had room to create large works and, most important, he had unlimited access
to the largest trees in Japan. The biggest influence on his work was the natural
environment that surrounded his home and studio. His love for the countryside
invigorated him, and lor the first time in his life, he became strongly involved in
the civic programs ol a community. The community reciprocated by supporting
him and his celebration ol modern and abstract art with the annual "Talk-about-
Trees Exhibition. "
The greatest influence on Bikky's later art, and his self image, was his trip
to Canada's Northwest Coast, meeting Bill Reid, and his exposure to the Native
art of the area. The totem poles of the coastal region humbled and awed him with
their power and presence, and he was moved by the decomposing fallen old totem
poles. For Bikky this was the natural order of things, the returning to nature, an
element missing in his own art. While he was always extremely close to nature as
his Ainu culture and religious belief dictated, he now believed that nature was the
final part of the sculpting process, that nature was now in fact his partner.
Fig. 7.2: "Kamui-Minrara" (Playground of the Gods) carved by Nuburi Toko and Shusei Toko in Burnaby, B.C.
While the Canadian First Peoples' artwork was very impressive to Bikky, it
was the respect that the mainstream culture held for the artists and, more important,
the respect for Native peoples in general that he found almost unbelievable. While
not perfect, the positive condition of Native Canadians far exceeded that of the
Ainu. That this could be possible shocked Bikky to his very soul. He began to dis-
play his ethnicity proudly in his art and began naming his work with Ainu names.
After his return to Otoineppu in 1983, Bikky worked like never before.
Influenced by his experience in Canada, his art changed. It was bigger, as in his
monumental pieces Four Winds and Listen to the Wind, and smaller, as in his Toys
at 3:00 A.M. The rough, crude axe marks of Bikky s monumental works evoked a
primal spirit and overall the works express the severe yet dynamic northern envi-
ronment. Bikky found the harsh northern winters an exciting challenge, and he
brought that rigor to his art. In contrast, his small works reflect meticulous detail
113
that were the direct resuk of exposure to the work of Bill Reid. Pieces such as Toys
at 3:00 A.M. are polished and smoothly finished. The two extremes reflect the
dynamic public side of his personality contrasted with Bikky's sensitive private self.
Throughout Bikky's artistic life he strove to express his personal mythology
and poetic sensitivity through abstract sculptural form. Bikky's beliefs derived from
Ainu traditions but also included his unique interpretations based on his influ-
ences, life experiences, and dreams." He constantly sought a supernatural order
of things to transcend everyday reality as we know it in kamuy mosir, the Ainu
spirit world, which coexists with earth's rhythms with dignity. For Bikky, his work
was more than the manipulation of wood and form; he believed that the spirit of
the tree allowed him to not only listen to the tree but to give it new life as part
of a work of art after it had been cut down. In reaching for the kamuy, the gods,
he went beyond the concept of naturalism and reached into the abstract celestial
world of the Ainu.
The dramatic circumstances surrotmding Bikky's death in 1989 were widely
reported in various newspapers throughout Japan. On a private level, Bikky's
book of condolences — containing statements and essays from friends, government
officials, and art critics, and newspaper articles — was published as a small book
entitled Moknba ni notta Bikky (Bikky on a Wooden Horse). *^ A photography book
was also published in the same year by local photographer, Hiroaki Kai, who was
fascinated by Bikky's artistic charisma and kept a pictorial record of the last six
years of Bikky's life. The book is titled Siniazaiva Bikky Shashin-shu: Hikari to Kage
(Lights and Shadows: A Photographic Collection of Bikky Sunazawa). More of
Bikky's work was made into a book entitled Sunazawa Bikky Sakuhin-shu (Bikky
Sunazawa Art Works) published in 1989. ' This book includes more of his writings,
sketches, and some of art critics' condolences regarding Bikky's death and work. In
1990 a large number of memorial essays written by a variety of people including
Ainu community leaders, modern art critics, and poets appeared in several major
newspapers in Hokkaido. In the same year Sunazawa Bikky Sobyo: Kita no Onna
(Bikky Sunazawa Sketches: Northern Woman) was published, which also includes
Bikky's short stories and essays, and artistic statements.'"
As a testimonial to Bikky's impact on the contemporary art of the Ainu,
and abstract art in general, at the time of this writing, there are no fewer than
three museums being planned for Bikky's work. However, destined to be the
most important is the museum that was opened on April 26, 2003. The village of
Otoineppu, where Bikky spent the last ten years of his hfe, honored Bikky with
a museum named Ateher Sanmore, on the same site as his last studio of the same
name. Otoineppu is a most appropriate place for this museum for visitors to not
only appreciate his work bur also to feel and get a sense of the environmental
surroundings that Bikky not only loved, but inspired him to create great art. He
once stated:
The northern country doesn't give up winter easily, when winter
loses the fight, spring still has to be in combat against the snow and
cold. When it's all over, the warm brilliant rays of the sun seem to sing
a song it! praise of victory (Hariu et al. 1989:97).
As we grow to understand and appreciate Bikky s view of the
energy found in all life forms living in the Playground of the Gods,
our own lives are richer. His artistic work and his fight for Ainu
equality will always be an inspiration to the Ainu people.
Chisato O. Dubreuil
End Notes
1. Interview (May 14, 1995).
2. During the 1960s Shibuzawa divorced his first wile and married another woman. Biidvy liked and respected
the first wile and couldn't understand the divorce. He chided his friend and finally Shibuzawa ended his
friendship with Bikky. It was a great loss, but Bikky continued to respect Shibuzawa throughout his life
(interview with Jimko Takagi, April 25, 1994).
3. Interview with Kazuko Arita (May 14, 1995).
4. However, there were two Ainu ocean-going plank boats, ita-o)na-chip, excavated from the suburbs of
Tomakomai, a port city on the south central shore of Hokkaido, with one boat having the character-
istic Ainu ay-US design motif. Buried under volcanic ash when Mt. Tarumae, thirty kilometers from
Tomakomai, erupted in 1667, the boats are dated to the early 1600s. The design motif is carved into the
gunnels of the boat. A paddle, excavated from the same site, has an itokpn, the patrilineal ancestral sign,
carved in the blade (K. Ohtsuka 1992: 312-313).
5. These poles were done as symbols of the frienciship between Burnaby, British Columbia in Canada and
Kushiro, Hokkaido in Japan of their sister-cities relationship. This large outdoor sculptor park is named,
"Kamui Mintara" (Playground of the Gods), the same title Bikky used for a sculpture in 1977 (See Fig.
7.2). Although Bikky spelled the title, "kamuy-mintar," Toko used a slightly different spelling, "Kamui
Mintara". The spellings of Ainu words varied considerably according to region or, later, according to per-
sonal preference.
6. However, many so-called Ainu representation of totem poles for tourist areas were done by Japanese carvers
as well.
7. TatsLihikd Siiibuzawa also introduced Bikky to French surrealistic writers whom he came to greatly admire
and influenced him (interview with Mistuko Arita, May 14, 1995). Bikky began putting a notebook with
pencils near his bed in order to keep dreams alive when he woke up, or when something suddenly came
into his mind. He called these writings "word sketches' [Ginka 1983:135-6). In 1976, some of the dream
writings were published as a small, limited edition book entitled Aoi Sakyu nite (In the Blue Sand Dune),
a work that is very abstract with strong surrealistic overtones.
10,
8
9
R. Sunazawa, ed. (1989).
Hariu et al. (1989).
R. Sunazawa, ed. (1990).
Bikky's work can be found in numerous public and private
collections in Japan and Canada (in alphabetical order):
Ainu Memorial Museum of Kane lo Kavvamura, Asahikawa, Hokkaido
Aoki, Sotoji, Tokyo
Anta, Mitsuko, Tokyo
Asahikawa Professional High School, Asahikawa, Hokkaido
Fujito, Takeki, Akan, Hokkaido
Kanagawa Prefectural Gallery, Kanagawa.
Kankyo Sekkei, Sapporo, Hokkaido
Kitanihon Mingei-sha, Co., Ltd., Sapporo, Hokkaido
Komakusa-so, Hokkaido
Kozo, Igarashi, Asahikawa, Hokkaido
Hayashi, Hideyuki, Tokyo
Hokkaido Asahikawa Museum of An, Asahikawa
Ishijima, Shmobu, Sapporo, Hokkaido
I to, Toyomaru, Asahikawa, Hokkaido
The Museum of Contemporary Art, Sapporo, Hokkaido
The Nakagawa Experimental Forest of the Hokkaido University,
Otoineppu, Hokkaido
Otoineppu mura (Otoineppu village), Hokkaido
Pieoche, Setsuko and Pierre, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Powell, Marjorie, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Reid, Martine and Bill, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Shanahan, Kumi, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Shimizu, Shogo, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Sunazawa, Chmita and Ichitaro, Sapporo, Hokkaido
Sunazawa, Kazuo, Akan, Hokkaido
Sunazawa, Ryoko, Sapporo, Hokkaido
Toya mura (Toya village), Hokkaido
Yamamoto, Mmoru and Mitsue, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Yamashiro, Yakeo and Sumiko, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Yazaki, Katumi, Sapporo, Hokkaido
Yukarori Kogei-kan (Yukar Vv/eaving Arts and Crafts Museum),
Asahikawa, Hokkaido
and m the collection of the author
117
118
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1990 Sunazawa Bikky: Sobyo Kita no China (Sunazawa Bikky Sketches: North Women). Tokyo: Yobisha Co.
125
Suttles, Wayne
1976 "Productivity and Its Constraints: A Coast Salish Case. " hidiini Art Tradition of the Northwest Coast, Carlson
ed., pp. 67—87. Burnaby, B.C.: Archaeology Press, Simon Fraser University.
Takakura, Shiichiro
1970 "Inaw." In Aiiiii Miuzoku-shi (Ethnography of the Ainu), vol. 1 & 2, Ainu Bunka Hozon Taisaku Kyogi-kai,
ed., pp. 65A-A5. Tok}'o: Dai-ichi Hoki Syuppan.
Takeoka, Wadao
1988 "Bijtitsu Jihyo" (Art Criticism). Hokkaido Shinibun, August 1 5.
Terada, Toru (trans. Thomas Guerin)
1 976 Japanese Art ni World Perspective. New York and Tokyo: Weatherhill/Heibonsha.
Toko, Nuburi
1995 Tokn Niihiiri Sakiihni-shu: Kaiiiiii Mintara (The Art Works ol Toko Ntiburi: Playground of the Gods). Tokyo:
Kyuryu-do.
Turner, Christy G., II
1989 "Teeth and Prehistory in Asia." Scientific Aiiiericaji 60 (February):88-96.
Vivien de St. Martin, I,.
1872 LAnnee geograpl)ique, revue annuelle des voyages de terre et de nier, vol. 9 and 10. Paris: Librairie Hachette et Cie.
Watanabe, Sanko (ed.)
1 989 "Tsuito-shyu: Chokoku-ka, Sunazawa Bikky" (A Memorial Collection: Mourning the Sculptor Bikky
Sunazawa). Kyodoshi Asahikawa (Local Magazine of Asahikawa) vol. 3, no. 3 (March): 46-54.
Yamakawa, Tsutomu
1988 Asn o Tsukuru Ainii Monzoku (The Ainu who would create tomorrow). Tokyo: Mirai-sha.
Yamaura, Kiyoshi and Hiroshi Ushiro
1999 "Prehistoric Hokkaido and Ainu Origins." Amu: Spirit of a Northern People, William W. Fitzhugh and
Chisato O. Dubreuil, eds., pp. 39—46. Arctic Studies Center, National Museum ol Natural History,
Smithsonian Institution in association with University of Washington Press.
Yazaki, Katsumi
1989a "Sozetsu na Saigo o Mitoru" (Grasping [Bikky's] Heroic Death), "Tsuito-shyu: Chokoku-ka, Sunazawa Bikky"
(A Memorial Collection: Mourning the Sculptor Bikky Sunazawa). Kyodoshi Asahikawa (Local Magazine of
Asahikawa) vol. 3, no. 3 (March): 53.
l')89b "Kita no Oh — Kamuy no Kuni e" (The Northern King going to the Land of the Gods), Bijutsii Asahikawa
no. 54 (April): 7-9.
Selected Exhibition Printed Materials
f CHRONOL OGJCA LLY AKKANCHD)
1967 Zasshu Kosei Sho-dobutsu no Yaen-ten (Hybrid Construction: Small Animals at the Night Feast). Sapporo:
Tokeidai Gallery, November 9-November 15, 1967.
1976 Sunazawa Bikky Ki-tnen-ten (Bikky Sunazawa Exhibition of Wooden Masks). Tokyo: Kunugi Gallery,
July 19-July 24, 1976.
1977 Tentacle (ineikyu) fTangible]: Sunazawa Bikky-ten (The Exhibition of Bikky Sunazawa: Tentacle (maze)
[Tangible]). Tokyo: Kunugi Gallery & Tamura Gallery, September 12-September 18.
1980 Mokuba ni Notta Bikky-ten (The Exhibition of Bikky Riding on A Wooden Horse). Sapporo: Art Gallery Saito,
December 4-December 9, 1980.
1981 Mokucho m Notta Bikky-ten (The Exhibition of Bikky Riding on a Wooden Bird). Sapporo: Daido Gallery,
February 16-February 21.
— Kita no Sbigin-tachi ten (The Exhibition of Northern Poets). Tokyo: Gallery Toshin, March 16-March 27
126
1983 Siinazaiva Bikky - Juto (Wooden Head). Tokyo: Aoki Gallery, September 5-September 17.
1984 Suuazawa Bikky Exhibition - Furiko (A Pendulum). Sapporo: Gallery Pambazuko, March 18-April 1.
1985 Hokkaido o Horn Bikky Saknhiu-ten (Carved Hokkaido: Bikky Exhibition). Asahikawa: Seibu Department
Store, )une 26-July 3.
1985 Kita o Horn Bikky-ten (The Carved North: Bikky Exhibition). Tokyo: Tobu Department Store, September
12-September 17.
1986 Ki no Roku-nin-ten (An Exhibition ot Six Artists ot Wood). Sapporo: The Hokkaido Museum q[ Modern Art,
August 23-September 3.
1987 Sunazawa Bikky-ten (Bikky Sunazawa Exhibition). Sapporo: The Sapporo Park Hotel, August 23-August 22.
1988 Ikki-taihoku-ten (The Exhibition of a Tree with Many Touches). Tokyo: The Inax Gallery 2, March 2-March 31.
1989 Gendai Sakka Series '89: Norio Ueno, Bikky Sunazawa. and Fimiiaki Fukita (Contemporary Artists' Series '89).
Yokohama: The Kanagawa Prefectural Gallery, January 21-February 5.
1990 Sunazawa Bikky-ten (Bikky Sunazawa Exhibition). Asahikawa: The Hokkaido Asahikawa Museum o( Art,
January 5-February 18.
1993 Hito to Kaze to Kamigami: Hokkaido no Gendai Mokueho (Man, Winds, and Gods: Contemporary Wooden
Sculptures in Hokkaido). Asahikawa: The Hokkaido Asahikawa Museum ol Art, August 28-October 3.
1994 Fentacle - Sunazawa Bikky-ten (Tentacle: Bikky Sunazawa Exhibition). Sapporo: The Hokkaido Museum of
Modern Art, April 16-May 15.
1995 A7 no Kioku, Chokoku no Kioku (Memory of Wood, Memory ot Sculpture). Sapporo: Museum ol Contemporary
Art, Sapporo, October 28— December 3.
1999 Ainu: Spirit of a Northern People. Washington, D.C.: National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian
Institution, April 30, 1999-January 2, 2000.
2001 Kiki: Sunazaiva Bikky-ten (Kiki: Bikky Sunazawa Exhibition). Sapporo: Museum of Contemporary Art,
Sapporo, June 6-July 15.
Television Productions
1965 Koa-kanno no Musuko-tachi (Koa-kanno's Sons), produced by Hokkaido Television (edited and organized by
Yoshida Gosuke), January 15.
1985 "Kamuy no Daichi ni Mokurei ga Hibiku (The Spirits of Wood Echo in the Land of the Kamuy), " Doeunient
Ningen Retto (Documentary, Human Islands), produced by NHK (Nippon-Hoso Kyokai-The Japanese
Broadcasting Association), March 9.
1985 "Ki ga Watashi-tachi Kureta Mono (What Trees Give to Us)," Sunday Q, produced by Sapporo Television,
June 10.
1988 Kitano Gunzo (The Northern Group), produced by Sapporo Television, November 13, 28 min.
1990 Nichiyo Bijutsu-kan (The Sunday Gallery), produced by NHK (Nippon-Hoso Kyokai - The lapanese
Broadcasting Association), February 1 1.
2001 Nichiyo Bijutsu-kan (The Sunday Gallery), produced by NHK (Nippon-Hoso Kyokai - I he lapanese
Broadcasting Association), Jtme 3.
127
Figure List
*Note: Unless othcnvisc indicated, all pieces are by Bikky Sunazaiva.
Front Cover "Juka" (Wooden Flowers), 1989
Willow; 212.0 X 140.0 x 140.0 cm
Otoineppu Village Office, Hokkaido
Photo: Chip Clark
Back Cot'er "Yottsu no Kaze" (Four Winds), 1986
Glehn's spruce, 7 m
Hokkaido Museum of Contemporary Art,
Sapporo
Photo: Toshie Fujishima
Frontispiece Bikky Sunazawa, June 25, 1983
Photo: Hiroaki Kai
hiside Flap Chisato Dubreuil, 2003
Photo: Regina VanDoren
Introduction
Frontispiece Bikky is carving a small piece in 1980s.
Photo: Hiroaki Kai
Figure A. 1 "Nitnekamuy (Evil God)," 1988
Katsura, Manchurin ash, walnut; 122.0 x
26.0 x 48.0 cm.
Hokkaido Asahikawa Museum of Art,
Asahikawa.
ReF: Fitzhugh and Dubreuil (eds., 1999:
Fig. 47.27)
Figure A. 2 Bikky Sunazawa, in a wheelchair at the
Kanagawa Prefectural Gallery, 1989
Photo: Hiroaki Kai
Figure A. 3 "Kiki" (the spirit of wood) calligraphy by
Bikky Sunazawa, 1989
The catalogue of The Contemporary Artists
Series '89 in the Kanagawa Prefectural
Gallery
Ref Gendai Sakka Series 'Si^ (1989:9)
Sidebar 1: Who Are the Ainnf'
Figure Al .2 Maps of Hokkaido and Ainu lands
(a) Traditional and Modern Ainu
Territories
Ref: Fitzhugh and Dubreuil (eds.,
1999:Fig. r.3)
(b) Modern Hokkaido
Ref: Fitzhugh and Dubreuil (eds., 1999:
Fig. 7.7 [after Siddle 1996])
Figure A1.3 Ainu Hunter in Mountain Clothes, late
19th century
National Park Service, Longfellow National
Historic Site, Cambridge, Massachusetts.
Photographer unknown
Sidebar 2: The Ainu Hotiteland
Figure A.2.1. Scenic photo of Hokkaido, c. 1990
Photo: David H. Dubreuil
Chapter J: Bikky s Early Life and Influences
(1931-1953)
Frontispiece Bikkys piece carved with his name,
"Bikky," 2000.
Photo: David H. Dubreuil
Figure 1.1 A photo of the 1932 Ainu activists' lobby
delegation in Tokyo: Koa-kanno (right),
Peramonkoro (left) with Bikky as a year-old,
and three other Ainu activists
Photographer imknown
Figure 1 .2 Bikky's father, Ichitaro Sunazawa
(Koa-kanno), 1940s
Photographer unknown
Figure 1.3 Bikky's mother, Peramonkoro Simazawa,
c. 1960
Photo: Masako Ivinoshita
Figure 1.4 An early abstract pen drawing by Bikky
Sunazawa, date unknown
Paper with pen; 27.5 x 38.0 cm
Kazuo Sunazawa, Akan, Hokkaido.
Photo: David H. Dubreuil
Figure 1.5 Untitled horse sculpture, late 1940s
Wood; 18.5 X 17.0 X 10.0 cm
Kazuo Sunazawa, Akan, Hokkaido
Photo: David H. Dubreuil
Figure 1.6 Wooden finger rings, late 1960s or
early 1970s
Wood; 1.5 cm diameter
Kitanihon Mingeisha Co., Ltd.,
Sapporo, Hokkaido
Photo: David H. Dubreuil
128
Sidebar 3: Ainu Wood Carving
Figure 1.3.1 Ikupasuy (prayer-sticks), artist unknown,
mid 20th century
Wood; (from top) CI 8761, 29.2 cm (L);
C18764, 28.0 cm (L); C18770, 33.0 cm
(L); Cl4724a, 35.5 cm (L); C13467,
35.5 cm (L)
Buffalo Museum of Science
Photo: Susan Einstein
Figure 1 .3.2 Four inaw by Bikky Sunazawa, 1 980s
Willow; approximately 30 - 40 cm
Photo: David H. Dubreuil
Chapter 2: The Night Train to Tokyo: Bikky s Art
Evolves (1953-1964)
Frontispiece Bikky in Asahikawa, Hokkaicio in the
1960s.
Photographer unknown.
Ref: Tentacle Sunazawa Bikky-ten
(1994: 90).
Figure 2.1 "Woman with Fan" by Ossip Zadkine,
1918
Material and size unknown
Ref Hammacher (1959:Fig. 3)
Figure 2.2 "Torso" by Shigeru Ueki, 1952
Red birch; 93.0 x 30.0 x 36.0 cm
Hokkaido Museum of Contemporary Art,
Sapporo
Ref Hito to Kdze to Kauii<^auii (1993:
Fig. 6)
Figure 2.3 "Dobutsu 6 - Hokaku sareta Dobutsu"
(Animal 6 - Captured Animal), 1960
Japanese red pine; 57.0 x 237.0 x 47.0 cm
Yukara Kougei-kan, Asahikawa, Hokkaido
Ref Asakawa (1996:Fig. 1)
Figure 2.4 "Animal B," 1962
Wood; size unknown
Location unknown
Ref Echizen (1993b:Fig. 6)
Figure 2.5 "Animal-Ushi (Animal-Cow)," 1962
Wood; size unknown
Location unknown
Ref Echizen (1993b:Fig. 7)
Figure 2.6 "Animal - Me (Animal-Eye) (B)," 1963
Pine; 133.0 x 30.0 x 30.0 cm
Private collection
Ref Asakawa (1996: Fig. 3)
Figure 2.7 An Ainu design, kamuy-chik, on a textile
work by Midori Toko, 1990s
Cotton, cotton thread: L 30.0 cm x
W28.0 cm
Private collection
Photo: David H. Dubreuil.
Sidebar 4 Ainu Tourist Art
Figure 2.4.1 Photograph of Kami/aki Souvenir Shop in
Asahikawa, early 20th century
Ref Ishijima (1980b:3).
Figure 2.4.2 Bikky mon'yo design drawing (no. 8),
February 26, 1 967^
Pencil on paper; 28.0 x 21.5 cm.
Ryoko Sunazawa, Sapporo, Hokkaido.
Photo: David H. Dubreuil.
Sidebar 5, Ainu Tabric Art
Figure 2.5.1 Ainu girls practicing design motifs on sand
in a scene from Shimanojo Murakami's
Ezo-shima kikau (Curious Sights of Ezo
Island), 1799
Ink, colors on paper
Hakodate Municipal Library
Photo by Susumu Tameoka
Figure 2.5.2 "Attush" garment, back view, 19th century
Elm-bark fiber with cotton applique and
embroidery; W: 122.0 x W: 127.0.
National Museum of Natural History
(E150779)
Photo: Dana Levy.
Ref Fitzhugh and Dubreuil (eds., 1999:
Fig. 42.3) ^
Figure 2.5.3 Women's tattoo designs (patterns of the west
Hidaka band, examples from Piratori village)
Ref Kodama (1970b: Fig. 51 )
Chapter 3: The Back of the Mask: Art a)id Activism
in Sapporo (1964-1978)
Frontispiece Bikky being interviewed by a newspaper
reporter in April 1974.
(Asahi Shiiiihiiii, April 6, 1974).
Figure 3.1 Tentacle (precise title imknown),
approx. 1976.
Wood; size unknown
Location unknown
Ref Tentacle Sniiazawa Bikky-ten
(1994:86)
129
Figure 3.2 (left) "Ki-ebi" (Wooden Lobster), 1976
Walnut, oilstdin, pigment; 82.0 x 40.0 x
7.0 cm
Private collection
Reh Tentacle SiDiaziUva Bikky-tcii
(1994:Fig. 28).
(right) "Ki-bachi" (Wooden Bee), 1979
Walnut, oilstain, pigment; 30.0 x 26.0 x
10.5 cm
Teshiogawa Onsen, Otoineppu, Hokkaido
Ref: Tentacle Siinazawa Bikky-tcn
(1994:Fig. 30)
Figure 3.3 Bear and Ekashi (respected Ainu elder),
1973
Wood; 69.5 X 56.5 cm
Kitanihon Mingeisha Co., Ltd., Sapporo,
Hokkaido
Photo: David H. Dubreuil
Figure 3.4 Untitled stacked images (a precursor to
Bikky's later totem poles), 1972
Wood; 199.0 X 38.0 cm
Kitanihon Mingeisha Co., Ltd., Sapporo,
Hokkaido
Photo: David H. Dubreuil
Figure 3.5 "Fusetsu no Cunzo" (Wind and Snow
Group) by Shin Hongo, erected in
Asahikawa Joban Park in 1970
(reconstructed in October, 1977)
Bronze; 230 cm
Asahikawa city, Hokkaido
Photo: David H. Dubreuil
Figure 3.6 The Ainu Flag, designed by Bikky
Sunazawa, used at the 44th pan-Hokkaido
United Labor Day Rally, May 1973
Ref: Hokkaido Shtmbim (May 5, 1973)
Figure 3.7 "Kimen" (mask), 1979
Japanese linden; 76.0 x 21.6 x 7.4 cm
Kitanihon Mingeisha Co., Ltd., Sapporo,
Hokkaido
Ref: Asakawa (1996:Fig. 14)
Figure 3.8 The relief sculpture, "Kamuy-mintar,"
1977
Sen (Caster aralia); 320.0 x 136.0 x 64.0 cm
Komakusaso, Hokkaido
Ref Tentacle Sunazawa Btkky-ten
(1994:13)
Sideb^ir 7: The Bear in Ainu Tourist Art
Figure 3.7.1 LIntitled carved bear by Masao Ito, ca. 1942
Wood, paint, metal inlaid nails for eyes;
9.5 X 6.3 X 3.6 cm
Yakumo-cho Education Committee,
Hokkaido
Photo: Shinobu Ishijima
130
Figure 3.7.2 Photo of Umetaro Matsui in Asahikawa,
early 20th century
The Ainu Memorial Museum of Kaneto
Kawamura, Asahikawa, Hokkaido
Photographer imknown
Chapter 4: Totem Poles and Tall Trees: Bikky
Returns to His Roots (1978-1983)
Frontispiece Bikky standing in front of a piece from his
"Juka" series (Wooden Flower) in his studio,
June 10, 1983.
Photo: Hiroaki Kai.
Figure 4.1 Untitled totem pole, 1979
Wood; approx. 10 m H.
Ainu Memorial Museum of Kaneto
Kawamura in Asahikawa, Hokkaido
Photo: David H. Dubreuil.
Figure 4.2 "Kami no Shita" (Tongue ol God), 1980
Japanese oak; 201.0 x^l 16.0 x 54.0 cm
Hokkaido Museum of Contemporary Art,
Sapporo
Ref Fitzhugh and Dubreuil (eds., 1999:
Fig. 47.18)''
Figure 4.3 "Kita no Dobutsu tachi" (Northern
Anmials), 1980
Japanese oak, walnut; 34.0 x 267.0 x
37.0 cm; 13.0 x 80.5 x 31.0 cm; 29.5 x
65.0 X 45.5 cm; 1 73.0 x 48.0 x 24.0 cm;
29.0 X 35.0 X 34.5 cm; 47.0 x 74.0 x 26.5
cm; 15.0 X 71.0 x 20.0 cm; 51.5 x 40.0 x
33.5 cm; 65.0 x 45.5 x 49.5 cm; 93.0 x
32.0 x 47.5 cm
Chinita and Ichitaro Sunazawa, Sapporo,
Hokkaido
Ref Asakawa (1996:Fig. 17)
Figure 4.4 "Shiko no Tori" (The Birds of Thought),
1981
Birch, Glehn's spruce; 7.5 m H. (left); 12 m
H. (center); 7.5 cm H. (right)
The Nakagawa Experimental Forest of the
Hokkaido University, Otoineppu,
Hokkaido
Photo: David H. Dubreuil.
Figure 4.5 Same as Front Cover
Chapter 5: Transforming Visions: Bikky and the
Northwest Coast of Canada, 1983
Frontispiece Bikky standing next to a totem pole
depicting frogs in the Gitksan Tsimshian
village of Kitwancool in the upper Skeena
River region, British Columbia in 1983.
Photo: Douglas Sanders.
Figure S.I A figurative sculpture, "Setsuko doll", 1983
Wood; 85.0 X 16.0 X 17.5 cm
Setsuko and Pierre Pieoche, Vancouver,
British Columbia.
Photo: David H. Dubrcuii
Figure 5.2 "Hole-through-the-Sky" totem pole, late
19th century
Wood; approx. 10 m
In situ Kirwancool, British Columbia
Photo: Werner Forman
Figure 5.3 "Indian Dance A" painting by Bikky
Sunazawa, 1983
Crayon, watercolor on paper; 52.0 x
36.0 cm
Shinobu Ishijima, Sapporo, Hokkaido
Ref: Tentacle Siuiaznwa Bikky-ten (1994:
Fig. 69)
Figure 5.4 Haida artist. Bill Reid (left) showing Bikky
(center) how to use the adze in Reid's
Studio on Granville Island, Vancouver,
British Columbia, 1983
Photo: Douglas Sanders
Figure 5.5 Untitled painting, f-rom "Images ot British
Columbia," 1983
Pencil, watercolor on paper; 22.5 x 28.8 cm
Minoru and Mitsue Yamamoto,
Vancouver,
British Columbia
Photo: David H. Dubreuil
Figure 5.6 A mountain sheep horn bowl, 19th-20th
century
Horn; 8.9 x 14.6 x 19.4 cm
Ref: Holm and Reid (1975:98)
Figure 5.7 Untitled work From "Images ot British
Columbia," 1983
Red cedar; 65.0 x 20.0 x 14.5 cm
Location unknown
Photographer unknown
Figure 5.8 Dzoonokwa mask, Kwakwakai'wakw, 1897
Wood; 30.0 X 24.0 cm
American Museum of Natural History
Ref: Jonaitis (1991:Fig. 3.7)
Figure 5.9 Untitled work from "Images ol British
Columbia," 1983
Maple; 35.0 x 21.0 x 18.5 cm
Shinobu Ishijima, Sapporo, Hokkaido
Ref: Asakawa (1996:Fig. 24)
Figure 5.10 "The Watchman" hom "Images of British
Columbia", 1983
Yellow cedar; 210.0 x 52.5 x 52.0 cm
Ref: Kiki: SiDiazauui Hikky-tcii (2001:
Fig. S- 14)
Figure 5.1 1 A modern frontal house pole by Bill Reid,
assisted by Douglas Cranmer, 1959
Museum of Anthropology, University of
British Columbia
Wood; 12.8 m
Photo: Bill McLennan
Sidebar 8 Bikky s Tools
Figure 5.8
artist unknown,
A mans makiri (knite
early 20th century
Wood, iron; 23 cm
Milwaukee Public Museum (N17340A,B)
Photo: Susan Einstein
Chapter 6: The Northern King: Final Years
(1984-1989)
Frontispiece Bikky working at his studio in Otoineppu,
Hokkaido.
January 23, 1986, Hokkaido SLuiiihiiii.
Photo: Katsuaki Kitayama.
Figure 6.1 "Me" (Buds), 1985
Japanese oak; 300.0 x 40.0 x 40.0 cm (left);
270.0 x 51.0 x38.0 cm (right)
The Asahikawa Professional High School,
Asahikawa, Hokkaido
Ref Hariu, et al. (1989:17)
Figure 6.2 A house post in situ, Cowichan, Vancouver
Island, British Coltunbia, 19th century
Wood; size unknown
The Royal British Columbia Museum,
Victoria, British Columbia
Ref: Suttles (1976:Hg. 4:10).
Figure 6.3 "Yottsu no Kaze" (Four Winds), 1986.
Glehn's spruce, 7 m
Hokkaido Museimi of Contemporary Art,
Sapporo
Photo: Toshie Fujishima
Figure 6.4 Bikky performing the kamuy nomi for the
tree spirit using an ikupasuy and sake on
January 18, 1986 in front of his stLidio,
Otoineppu, Hokliaido
Hokkaido Shimbun, January 23, 1986
Photo: Katsuaki Kitayama
Figure 6.5 "Kaze ni Kiku" (Listening to tiie Wind),
1986
Glehn's spruce, katsura; 214.0 x 605.0 x
68.0 cm
Hokkaido Museum of Contemporary Art,
Sapporo
Ref Fitzhugh and Dubreuil (eds., 1999:
Fig. 47.24)
131
Figure 6.6 "Kaze" (Wind), 1988
Japanese elm; 190.5 x 242.0 x 74.0 cm
Toyamura, Hokkaido
Ref: Kiki: Siinazawa Bikky-ten (2001 :
Fig. S-30).
Figure 6.7 "Kaze" (Wind), 1988
Japanese oak; 174.5 x 124.0 x 131.0 cm
Hokkaido Museum of Modern Art,
Sapporo
Ref: Asakawa (1996:Fig. 35)
Figure 6.8 "Kaze no Oh to Oh-hi" (King and Queen
of Wind), 1988
Manchurian ash; 173.0 x 38.0 x 35.0 cm
Ryoko Sunazawa
Ref: Asakawa (1996:Fig. 37)
Figure 6.9 "Kita no Oh to Oh-hi" (Northern King and
Queen), 1987
Walnut, Caster araHa; 138.0 x 76.0 x 66.0 cm
Kanagawa Prefectural Gallery, Yokohama
Ref: Asakawa (1996:Fig. 31)
Figure 6.10 "Kita no Dobutsu" (Northern Animals),
1987
Japanese oak; 80.0 x 198.0 x 48.0 cm
Chinita and Ichitaro Sunazawa, Sapporo,
Hokl<aido
Ref: Simazmva Bikky-ten (1990:Fig. 11)
Figure 6.1 1 "Bunsui-rei A.B" (Watershed A.B), 1985
Japanese oak, Caster aralia; 169.0 x 99.0 x
29.0 cm; 172.0 x 53.0 x 30.0 cm
Chinita and Ichitaro Sunazawa, Sapporo,
Hokkaido
Ref: Tentacle Sunazawa Btkky-tm (1994:
Fig. 45)
Figure 6.12 "Cozen Sanji no Cangu" (Toys at 3:00
A.M), 1987
Wood; 44.5 x 52.0 x 25.5 cm
Otoineppu Village Office, Hokkaido
Ref: Fitzhugh and Dubreuil (eds., 1999:
Fig. 47.22)
Figure 6.13 "Transformation" pendant with detachable
"mask" by Bill Reid, 1982
Boxwood; 8.0 cm diameter; mask head;
5.5 cm
Martine Reid
Ref: Shadboh (1986:51)
Figure 6.14 "Kita no Oh to Oh-hi" (Northern King and
Queen), 1987
Crayon, watercolor on paper; 38.0 x
17.5 cm; 38.0 x 16.5 cm
Ryoko Sunazawa
Ref: Asakawa (1996: Fig. 44)
Figure 6.15 "Do No.l" (Move No.l), 1987
Pencil on Japanese paper; 25.0 x
2107.5 cm
Otoineppu Village Office, Hokkaido
Ref Tentacle Sunazawa Bikky-ten
(1994:76 & 77; Fig. 85)
Figure 6.16 Detail of "Tokyo no Hi" (Night Lights of
Tokyo), 1988
Pencil on Japanese paper; 25.0 x
369.0 cm
Martine Reid
Photo: David H. Dubreuil
Fig. 6.17 "Shiki no Kao" (Faces of Four Seasons)
calendar, 1986
Woodblock prints; 67.0 x 33.0 cm
Photo: David H. Dubreuil
Fig. 6.18 "Kakusei A.C" (Atavism A.C), 1988
Katsura; 122.0 x 80.0 x 15.0 cm; 121.0 x
73.0 X 15.0 cm
Toyamura, Hokkaido
Reh Tentacle Sunazawa Bikky-ten (1994:
Fig. 54)
Fig. 6.19 Bikky and his friends at home,
December 1 988
Photo: Masahide Sato
Chapter 7: Bikky Legacy
Frontispiece
Bikky at home in 1988.
Photo: Masahide Sato.
Figure 7.1 An Ainu tourist shop in Akan, Hokkaido,
2000
Photo: David H. Dubreuil
Figure 7.2 "Kamui-Mintara" (Playground of the
Gods) carved by Nuburi Toko and
ShuseiToko, 1992
Burnaby, British Columbia
Wood; various sizes
Photo: David H. Dubreuil
Chisato O. Dubreuil,
of Native Ainu descent,
is a specialist in the arts
and cultures of the
indigenous peoples of
the North Pacific Rim.
In addition to lecturing on traditional and
contemporary arts internationally, her first book
Ainu: Spirit of a Northern People (1999), co-edited
with William W. Fitzhugh, is considered a
major study of the Ainu people. She is currently
nearing completion on a work which considers
the contributions of the Kitanmax School of
Northwest Coast Indian Art ('Ksan) on the
resurgence of the arts of the Gitksan Tsimshian
in northern British Columbia.
Cover Design: The Castle Press
Cover Photo: Juka (Wooden Flowers), 1989
Back Cover Photo: Yottsu no Kaze (Four Winds), 1986
Printed in Pasadena, California U.S.A.
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